A Badger Amongst Snakes
by hpficluver
Summary: As hormones rage through the teenagers of 1970s Hogwarts, tensions rise between the once friends; Ted Tonks and the high and mighty Miss Andromeda Black.. A/N: Rated M for adult themes, language and in case of future explicit content, but probably suitable for most teens. Reviews and follows greatly appreciated. Hope you enjoy!
1. The Boy with the Blue Eyes

"Oh will you shut up about Malfoy, Cissy. All he did was wink at you. And he probably didn't even do that."

The blonde-haired fourth year's love-dazed expression vanished as she stopped put her hands on her hips and menacingly raised an eyebrow at her raven sister. "And what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"He probably had something in his eye." Bellatrix snapped back, and with a huff and a swish of her cloak, Narcissa Black had turned down the next corridor.

"You need to stop it Bella… One day she'll hex you."

"Not if I hex her first…" said Bellatrix, a wicked grin spreading across her face.

Always the peacekeeper, the middle Black sister just bit her tongue, shook her head and started walking to class once again.

"What? Oh come on Andromeda, you know I'm right!" shouted Bella, breaking into a jog to catch up with her sister. "Why would a seventh year, hunk of a man, Quidditch star," her volume dropped "favourite of the Dark Lord," her voice returned to her normal, loud volume "be interested in a fourth year?"

"All I'm saying that I've heard a lot of stuff that he's taken Severus under his wing just to get to her. Being that they're always hanging out when he's not with that ginger mudblood girl. Therefore, I think it's highly likely Lucius has a thing for our Narcissa."

"Pah! Bollocks! I spend all my classes with him and he doesn't mention her at all..." Bellatrix pouted and cocked an eyebrow as she folded her arms.

"Probably because he knows you'd run straight to her and breathe every syllable he utters not only to her, but to me… and probably the whole of Hogwarts."

The two laughed together, Andromeda's sweet laugh mixed with Bellatrix's cackle. Other than their noses and the matching Slytherin ties around their neck, the two Black sisters where as different as they could get. Despite being a year apart, Bellatrix a seventh and Andromeda a sixth year, both, having a free period and homework of some kind, headed towards the library.

The sisters sat down in silence and started working. Lucius Malfoy, Chalmers Crabbe and Elizabeth McNaire all swaggered in with grins on their faces, Lucius tossing around some galleons. Bellatrix looked up and waved, grinning too. Andi chuckled and leant across the table to her sister.

"If I didn't know you were so desperate on trying to get into the Dark Lord's robes, I would say you have a crush on Mr. Malfoy…"

"ANDI! YOU CAN'T SAY THAT!"

"About what? You fancying the Dark Lord, or fancying Malfoy?"

Bella slapped Andi's upper arm and chuckled. "Either really. But I don't fancy Malfoy. At all. Okay?" But the way Bellatrix had pulled her crooked wand out of her hair and was pointing it at her sister was saying a different story.

"Okay. Okay. I believe you." The brunette stood up and began to walk over to the nearest bookshelf. She suddenly spun on her heels, playfully ran back to the table and smiled cheekily. "So you're not denying you fancy the Dark Lord?"

Knowing what her sister's reaction would be, she darted behind the nearest bookshelf as Bellatrix threw a curse where she had just been sat. Andi heard Bellatrix swear under her breath and the chair scraping on the floor as she got up to pursue her teaser. Andi ran to the one place none of her sisters knew about. The Care of Magical Creatures section. She adored the leather, fur and scale covered books, about Dragons, Hippogriffs, Gryndilows, Harpies and every mystical creature she could think of. Whilst she was taking the subject as one of her N.E.W.T's her sisters didn't know of her passion for the subject.

Looking over her shoulder as she ran, she rammed into someone and they ended in a sprawled pile of limbs on the floor.

When she went to look up her soft, long, brown hair, that never seemed to end, had flown over her head and now was covering her face entirely, blocking her view of the poor soul she had crushed.

"I am so sorry!" she panted between giggles.

"No harm done..." a male voice winced from beneath her.

She went up on all fours and looked down herself and saw that her knee was precariously placed between his legs, pressed right up against his crotch.

"Oh Merlin, did I-?"

"_Yep_." The male's voice was so high pitched in pain that she has to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. It was a good thing her hair was covering her face for the beaming smile she was sporting was not disappearing. She stood up and at last flicked her hair away from her face to see a face she knew once. Or underneath the adult features, a face she knew once. A boy she had forgotten but that had danced in and out of her dreams, both when she was at her lowest and at her best.

And that boy had been her friend. That boy was Ted Tonks.

* * *

_Four Summers previous._

"_Dromeda!"_

"_Ted, you know I hate people calling me that!" She giggled and fell to the green ground, her soft brown curls surrounding her face._

"_Yes, but I'm special!" He winked then pouted and put his hands on his hips._

"_You don't half look silly, Ted."_

_He laughed and flopped to the ground beside her smiling a toothy grin._

"_You're missing another tooth!"_

"_I know! Only one more baby tooth to go now!"_

"_Then you'll be all grown up like me!" Andi giggled and swished her hair, the light of the setting sun catching her highlights and reflecting them back in a soft glow. Following then by her own toothy grin._

"_That one is still growing through though!" Ted laughed, he pointed his finger at her left canine and raised an eyebrow. "We aren't adults yet." He went to withdraw his finger, but they both moved at the same time in laughter and his finger brushed over her lower lip. They both stopped for a moment, their eyes catching each other's. His, the deep blue like the ocean depths against hers, grey of a sky before a snow storm. He almost stroked it, mesmerised for the first time by the colour of her lips, pale pink like the candied rose petals on the cheesecake they had had for dinner…_

_Andi felt something shift in her too. She blushed redder than she ever had before; she felt the heat burn her cheeks as if the noon-day sun was directly above them. Ted coughed, breaking her from her reverie and he retracted his finger wiping it on his shirt before laughing and lying back against the grass. Andi did the same, shaking her head and with it the weird grown-up feelings she had just felt away._

"_I hate being a second year." Ted grumbled._

"_Why? We can play Quidditch now!"_

"_Yeah, but you're good at it Andi. I'm just another…"_

"_Just another what?" She frowned._

"_Just another no-good muggle-born."_

"_Teddy! Don't say that, you're amazing with magic."_

"_Nah. But it's cool. I have my own charms."_

_She laughed, although she didn't quite know why. It wasn't funny… because he did._

_Andi looked over at him and studied his face._

"_Your nose is all wrinkly again." Ted suddenly stated._

"_What?" She blushed again and turned away._

"_Your nose goes wrinkly when you think." He turned and smiled. "I think it's cute."_

"_You think Mandrakes are cute." She rolled her eyes._

"_The one I had was really fat okay! It was adorable!"_

_Andi giggled again._

_She closed her eyes and settled into the grass._

_Then, her world changed._

_She felt lips against hers. Soft lips that, like hers, didn't quite know what to do. She thought at first to open her eyes, but then she remembered how in all the fairytales they always had their eyes closed when the lovers kissed. She puckered her lips slightly to kiss back, her hand moving from the grass and somehow, instinctively finding the kisser's cheek._

_The lips pulled away, and as her eyelids fluttered open, the blue sea and the grey sky met once more._

_Her nanny, (her mother not developing a fondness for her middle child compared to her other two sisters) had told her about kisses; and how a kiss upon a young girl's lips marked her becoming a woman. Andi didn't want to be a woman yet. _

_Tears stung her eyes as she sat up and shuffled away from the kneeling boy in-front of her, the one with the crooked smile, behind which he had 26 normal teeth, one baby tooth and one gap._

"_Ted… why?"_

"_Because… I think, I mean, out of all the girls I know. And, I dunno. I feel… I think we're meant to kiss."_

_Andi shook her head and Ted's smile disappeared._

"_Bellatrix…"_

"_What about her?"_

"_You're a mudblood-" Andi cut off and covered her mouth with her hands. "I'm sorry Ted! I'm sorry! I didn't mean that!"_

"_It's cool." He tried to smile, but she could see the hurt behind it._

"_No I mean, I don't want you to get hurt by her or my family… because of…"_

_There was a silence. Andi felt all too grown up to fast. She agreed with Ted now. She didn't like being a second year._

"_I'm just confused, Ted." She murmured._

"_Me too." He murmured back._

"_You're my friend."_

"_Mine too."_

* * *

Those were the last words she had said to him, and him to her. The days of longing stares, turned into awkward catching's of the eye, to passing glances. The next term, Hufflepuff and Slytherin had no lessons together. As did the last term of second year. Third, fourth and fifth year came and went, and the pounding heart within Andi's chest honestly couldn't remember if they had had a class together since.

She stood there for a minute, re-arranging her hair, not sure where to look as he sat up grabbed his crotch and moaned in agony, collapsing to the floor again. He obviously hadn't seen who she was… or had he? Had he forgotten too? Forgotten the childish laughs and imaginings of rolling in mud and one day riding hippogriffs together… Forgotten the childish dreams that had left her the second he had taken her kiss…

"What on earth where you running from? A banshee? A troll?" He laughed as he groaned, his eyes still shut.

"Bellatrix-"

"Definitely a banshee then!" he laughed to himself "What on earth did you provoke the baddest Black for-" His sentence trailed off as his eyes opened and he looked at her. Was that last memory hitting him like it had just hit her? His eyes narrowed, as if he was trying to work out how he knew her face, or like she had, the feature's hidden behind the years. Those blue eyes the widened and he shuffled back startled.

"Hi."

"Hi."

After, what, 4 years? Was that all they had to say to one another?

She looked down at the floor, more confused than she had ever felt. For them to be literally thrown back together like this… Had she ever really missed him? He had become that haunting angel in her dreams, forgotten as soon as she woke. Friends come and go all the time in school. He was just another. _But he is more than that…_ _He has your kiss._

Andi started picking off her nail polish, a nervous habit she had had since before she could remember.

"Your nose is wrinkling."

She looked up to see him stood now. He wasn't quite smiling, but there was that slight glint in his eyes. "Whatcha thinking about this time?"

"You've… You've grown." She murmured.

"I know. How's the view down there." He chuckled. "I guess you're not the tall one anymore."

"I'm still tall."

"That's true."

She shook her head. Merlin, the conversation they were having, it was as if they were still 12. From the 12 year old boy at the beginning of second year to the 17 year old man stood before her, ending their winter term of sixth year. All that time; oh how it had changed him. He must be at least 5 foot 11 now. His face had elongated and he actually had defined muscles. But he was still skinny, and his hair was still the scruffy mousy brown, straw blonde combination it had always been. But he had grown up. Just like her.

"Dromeda…"

"Don't call me that Ted. You know I hate it."

"I know you hated it, but a lot of things change in four years."

"I… I have to go…"

"Really?"

"I… I'm sorry Ted. But… this is wrong."

"Wrong? What's wrong?" He laughed and shook his head. "Blimey, if you're family's gonna kill you for just talking to a mudblood now then I'm glad I got out when I did." He ran a hand through his hair and sat back down, against the bookcase.

"Don't say that."

"Don't say what Andi?"

"Don't call yourself a mudblood."

He frowned with a half-smile up at her.

"You never had a problem with calling me one before. Nor Lily Evans. Nor Jermiah, or Smithy or Eric Clawsden-"

"Stop it."

"Or Emily Brunswick or Billy, Dotty or Mark-"

"Stop it okay?"

He raised an eyebrow at her outburst.

"I'm no different to them."

She bit her lip hard to stop herself. _But you are. You're Ted._

He stood. He walked over to her and thumbed her green tie between his forefinger and thumb.

"Like I always said, Andi. It's cool."

"Ted…" His name trickled over her lips like a brook did over pebbles. She closed her eyes and breathed in his smell. He smelt like a man too. Her dreams flooded her senses. Was it this man before her that had been the shadow she had chased after too many times? A man who had grown from the boy she used to know.

She opened her eyes, and he was gone. Leaving nothing but his scent in the air, and a burning on the corner of her lips, where his kiss from so long ago had left its permanent mark.

* * *

"_There's something different about you Andi…"_

"_W-What?" The twelve year old shook with nerves as her older sister circled her like a vulture waiting for its prey._

"_Hanging around with that mudblood is no good for you Andromeda. Will I have to tell dear old Papa? He will be most displeased…"_

"_Bella… please don't tell Father!"_

"_Why would I tell him if there is nothing going on?"_

"_There isn't! I promise."_

"_Good." Bellatrix released her tight grip on her wand and sister's shoulder. "But there is something different about you…"_

"_I wouldn't know why." _Don't think of the kiss, don't think of the kiss, don't think of the kiss.

"_Hmmm. Well. Go and give this to Lucius will you? Father sent it, says it's a message from the Dark Lord."_

_Andi hesitated. "The Dark Lord?"_

"_No Andi, Merlin. For God's sake of course the Dark Lord."_

_She moved nowhere. "Go on!" And off Andi ran, already forgetting the boy with the blue eyes as he was replaced by the man with the red._


	2. Invading Dreams

"Alright Ted?"

"Alright Frank?" The two Hufflepuff boys bear hugged and laughed after they met each other on the way down to dinner.

"How was muggle-studies?"

"I spent most of the lesson trying to explain what the purpose of a television is..."

Frank laughed as they sat down together at the Hufflepuff table waiting for the golden platters to fill themselves with delectable food- as always.

Frank Longbottom, like Ted, was quite the typical teenage lad. Slightly shyer than most, but typical all the same. He had short brown hair, sticky out ears and was just shorter than his best friend.

"Why if it isn't the dreadful duo..." Said a female voice from behind them.

"Oh come on Alice you know you love me. I completely understand that you hate Frank though, don't worry I'll get rid of him later and we can go snog in the shrubbery."

The boys turned around to see Alice stood there, hands on her hips with a crooked smile on her lips.

"Maybe another time, Teddy…" She laughed and shook her head as she bent down and gave Frank a quick peck on the lips before literally walking over the table and sitting down to end up facing the two boys, entwining her fingers around Frank's. Despite being a Gryffindor Alice was always welcome at the Hufflepuff table. That was the one thing that was always noticeable at meal times in the Great Hall: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff tables were a mix of crimsons, yellows and blues, whilst there being a distinct green sea on the Slytherin table.

And yet tonight, Ted's eyes were drawn to it. Trying to find her face amongst the crowd.

He had given the table the occasional glance every once in a while before. But now, he couldn't do anything but stare.

"Ted…" Alice pulled him out of his trance and slammed him back down at the dinner table. "Are you okay? I mean you haven't touched your food…"

"Yeah… fine Alice…"

"You don't look fine…"

"Where did Frank go?" He looked around and he had vanished.

"Merlin, Teddy, how out of it are you? Frank left ten minutes ago, he forgot he was helping out with the first years broomstick evening classes."

"Oh…"

"Seriously, what's up… you seem, on edge?"

"What would you do…? What would you do if someone you used to know came back into your life… but… I mean do you go for it?"

"Go for it?" She frowned.

"I knew this person. I thought… I thought the world of them. Then I messed up. Big time. Scared her off-"

"Oh so it's a her is it?" Alice lent in across the table, her brown eyes sparkling and a cheeky expression on her face.

Ted rolled his eyes and slumped his face in his hand.

"It doesn't matter. It wouldn't work anyway."

"Why not?"

Ted stood, grabbing his bag with a sigh. He ignored the calls of his name from Alice; he ignored the smile from Madge and Ed on his way out of the hall. He ignored the whole world as he entered his dorm and flopped down onto his bed.

He sighed deeply again. He pulled out from underneath his bed his shoebox, filled with parchment and quills. He tipped it out on the bed. Nothing was more distracting than writing a letter home.

_Dear Mum, Dad, and Lizzie.  
__Hope you all had a good Halloween and bonfire night, sorry I haven't replied sooner, been manic here. I had a great birthday, missed you all immensely, thanks for the cake. We'll have a proper party at Christmas, and I can do magic… er legally now- mum don't worry, I've still got a clean record- oh and Lizzie, thanks for the friendship bracelet, I haven't and I will never take it off._

He subconsciously spun the yellow, green and blue yarn around his wrist as he thought.

_Frank's doing great, he said to say hello.  
__How's everything going with work, Dad? I've got this wicked spell to show you, will speed along your accounts so much.  
__Speak soon, lots of love  
__Ted xx_

He folded up the letter and fumbled through the shoebox for an envelope, but as he did so Frank walked in.

"Ted? You okay? Alice just came and got me from the pitch, she's worried about ya."

"I'm fine, honestly." He grinned and carried on lifting papers out of the box.

"Whatcha looking for?"

"Envelope, I'm being the angelic son and writing home for a change!" He winked and the boys both laughed. "Hey Frank look at these!"

At the bottom of the box there was a pile of photographs tied together with string.

"Oh Merlin, look at you! What are they from, first, second year?"

"Second year I think… Man, I completely forgot about these…"

Ted laughed as he looked at the third one in the pile.

"Look at you pining after our Alice." He pouted and pulled what the gang referred to as his 'Love me Professor' face.

"Shut up!" Frank laughed at dived at Ted grabbing the photo from him.

"Oh look here's another!"

"Give it here!"

"And another! Blimey Frank, it only took you 3 years to muster up the courage to ask her out!"

Frank gave up and sat next to Ted, thumbing through the photographs of them in younger years laughing at how neatly Ed wore his uniform and how short Ted was compared to everyone else.

"Ted, who's this?"

"Huh?"

Frank passed him a photograph and Ted's mouth ran dry.

"That's… That's Andromeda."

"Andromeda? As in Andromeda Black? The middle Slytherin bitch?" Frank laughed but Ted snapped.

"Don't call her that!"

"Woah… sorry."

"Nah, I'm sorry…"

Ted ran his fingers over the picture, following the lines of her hair as it curled down her shoulders. She looked so different in this picture to the girl that had run into him earlier. Her eyes. They still had that softness to them. If it was possible, these grey eyes were warm. Not the ice cold of her elder self.

He shook his head and chucked the photos down with the others before gathering them all up and dumping them back in the shoe box and sticking that under his bed. He put his fresh letter on the side table.

"Remind me to post that tomorrow." He told Frank with a smile.

"Ted… like. I know we're blokes and stuff, but if you need to talk-"

"Nah, I'm fine Frank, honestly. Just knackered."

"Cool. Well I'll be back in a bit, gonna go find Alice and show her these." He nodded towards the few photos he still had in his hands before heading towards the door.

"See ya."

_Alone again_. He stripped from his uniform, pulling off his yellow tie and hooking it over the foot of his bed, still done up, as always. He pulled on some navy trackie bums before slipping into the bed covers and falling fast asleep.

* * *

"_Teddy… Oh Teddy…"_

_Grey eyes pierced through the darkness like a cat's. "Teddy… don't ignore me Ted."_

_An angelic musical voice called to him and drew him in like a drowning sailor to a mermaid's call…_

_Brown locks that curled gently to the floor, mingling with the dark green silk of her dress. It clung to her body in all the right places, her breast's weren't big, her figure quite boyish, and yet all woman too._

"_I've grown up Ted. Haven't you? Or are you still my little mudblood…"_

_The girl cocked her head back a devilish grin in her eyes before she lowered her face and grinned. Her left canine only just peeping through her gum._

"_Dromeda…"_

_Then he was kissing her. Tasting her skin under his lips, tearing the green silk from her body._

"_Oh Ted. I wouldn't do that. You should know your place mudblood…" She hissed into his ear. Then a flick of her tongue and then another hiss more snake like than human._

_He pulled away and her grey eyes had slits for pupils as she grinned, her lips no longer pale pink of rose petals but blood red._

_He staggered back and fell into a mop of black, raven, curly hair and heard more hissing in-between a cackle that everyone in the school knew._

_Then another sister came into sight. Blonde with just a malicious grin on her lips as her two older sisters._

_In one blink they were snakes, and he was their prey. A badger caught between them as more snakes slithered into view, more and more, biting, poisoning, tearing him apart, all hissing the same word: mudblood._

* * *

Ted awoke in a cold sweat, his heart hammering hard against his chest as he shivered and panted for air. He looked around and saw Frank and Ed sound asleep in the beds around him. He reached for his wand and pulled on a jumper before leaving the dorm and going to sit in front of the fire in the Hufflepuff common room. It was circular in shape, cosy, enclosed and personal. The walls had ivy on the coppery stone, plants and flowers draping down from the domed ceiling. The floor beneath his bare feet was a soft, coffee brown carpet, and there was a mix of yellow fabric and copper leather sofas, with bean bags and armchairs scattered upon it. The brass open fireplace that stood in the centre of the room was only just keeping the flames alive; the warm yellow glow flickering across Ted's drained face. He rested back into the beanbag and ran a hand through his sweaty hair.

The word had never bothered him that much. It had never haunted him like just now. The first few times he was called it, he didn't even know what it meant and was confused as to why it riled the gentle natured Frank so much. It had slipped from Andromeda's lips every now and again, but he knew deep down she never meant it. Or at the time he had thought so.

_Why now. Why is she suddenly here now?_

There had been times when he had completely forgotten she existed. Whole years even. Whenever the Black's where mentioned in the past, he used to spare a thought for the friendship they once had, but it had never affected him in this way. Since the second he saw her face earlier today, it seemed she wasn't to leave him, invading his thoughts, invading his conversations, and now invading his dreams; turning them into nightmares.

He closed his eyes, attempting to doze off back to sleep, but she was there again, as if imprinted on the back of his eyelids.

She was a grown woman now. And she is hot. All the Black sisters are; if dared to admit it to himself. But he didn't want that. At least he thought he didn't. He wanted the sweet girl that he kissed that autumn evening. When he couldn't control the feelings inside of himself anymore as the sun kissed her skin to make it glow; never had she looked more beautiful. He had to show her…

"Stop it." He muttered to himself.

He didn't want to relive that memory again. The memory that for weeks after plagued him. Because he knew why she shook her head after, he knew the reason stopping her from ever letting herself like him.

_Your filthy, dirty blood._


	3. Kerfuffle in the Clearing

"Andi's been very quiet the last few days…"

Narcissa turned her head to look over her shoulder at her brunette sister, plodding along far behind them with her head down, and picking off her nail polish.

"So? She is allowed her own space, Bella."

The eldest and youngest Black sisters walked arm in arm down the corridor as they spoke, just out of Andromeda's ear shot.

The raven sister frowned, a dark glint in her black eyes. "It's suspicious."

"You think everything is suspicious. And really, you're behaving the most suspicious out of all of us. What was the last message from the Dark Lord? Lu is being all weird too…"

"Lu? You call him Lu?"

Narcissa flushed red and swallowed loudly, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear. "A-Anyway, you were err, talking about Andi."

"Right…" Bellatrix frowned before cackling. "I'm just saying that people, I mean people other than us, have started noticing too. We can't have any foul ups at this point Cissy. Reputation is everything. And that's all I'll say."

Narcissa rolled her eyes and smiled as Bellatrix whipped out her wand, and for no reason tripped up a second year with a hex.

* * *

"That's the second time you've repainted those today, Andi." Narcissa nodded to her at the lunch table.

"Huh?"

Andi looked up from her deep red nail polish and smiled.

"Oh I… I've just not been quite happy with the way it's been going on. That's all."

"Okay… If you say so. But you should know Bella's on your tail. She thinks you're acting odd."

"Well, you must be pleased."

"What?" Narcissa raised an eyebrow as she swallowed a mouthful of soup.

"If she's so preoccupied with me, then she won't be bothering you and Lucius all the time."

Narcissa smiled a toothy grin, one she rarely adorned in public, and even then would only share with her closest companions.

"You've got a free period after this, yeah?"

"Nah, sorry Cissy, I've got Creatures."

"Yeah, that's what I mean, isn't that cancelled?"

"What?" Andi blew on her nails to dry them.

"Didn't you hear?"

"No, what's happened?"

"Oh, Professor Kettleburn's had to go to St. Mungo's. Fire crab incident or something."

"Oh…" She tried to hide her genuine concern for her favourite Professor. She shrugged. "I'll still go down there, just to check."

The blonde frowned and scoffed. "If you want to waste a free…"

Andi bit her lip in response, not daring to say anything.

Lunch finished, Andi kissed her sister bye till dinner, then grabbing her stuff headed towards the Creatures clearing. By the time she had arrived she had picked the nail polish off of her index and middle left fingers. She frowned as she reached the edge of the trees, as she could already see double the amount of people that her usual class.

"Tom? What's going on?" She laid a hand on his shoulder and the tall, dark and handsome man turned.

"Some bullshit that all of the classes are being dumped together as the sub is only available during certain periods."

"What?" Andi groaned and threw her head back. "Let me guess, we're stuck with bloody Gryffindor."

"Not just Gryffindor."

"What do you mean, 'not just Gryffindor'? "

"Hufflepuff."

Andi looked up and her heart froze? "W-What?"

"Yep. This school is really going to the dogs. I put up with enough mudbloods in the first three years; I don't need lessons with the scum now."

Andi half leant into Tom Wilkes as he leant back against the fence. She suddenly felt incredibly vulnerable as yellow ties became more and more distinct.

_He was in the Creatures section of the library. Ted was in the Care of Magical Creatures section of the library. He must study it, he must…_

"You okay, Black?" He darkly chuckled, stroking her shoulder.

"Yeah… yeah fine…" But her head was spinning, her eyes darting from guy to guy, and she then thought momentarily she was wrong, he wasn't there. But then she saw someone stand up, and he was taller than the rest, standing out amongst the crowd of Slytherins.

He was smiling, laughing, light dancing in his eyes. Then he caught hers. His smile froze momentarily before vanishing and she could see his Adam's apple move as he swallowed.

He turned back to his friends and laughed again, high fiving one guy, but she kept staring and caught his second and third glances and the slight waver of his lip as he smiled at his friends twice more.

"Quiet down! Quiet down!"

"Professor Dumbledore…" Some of the students murmured as they sat, either on the gravel, grass or logs. Tom, Andi and a few other Slytherins and Ravenclaw's however stayed stood, leaning against the fence. As he rolled his eyes, Tom pulled out a pear and began to eat it, one arm still around Andi's shoulder as he did so.

"Now, I know this may be unexpected and hard to take for some students, but until Professor Kettleburn returns in the new year, Professor Grubbily-Plank will be substituting, but because of her Head of House commitments and her classes with the younger years, she will only be available during, what was originally the Slytherin's and Ravenclaw's lesson. So everyone will be have lessons together till the end of the year-"

And that was when the shouting began, Gryffindor's at the Slytherin's and they were dishing it back just as much. Two Hufflepuff girls attempted to diffuse the argument but that failed miserably and they sat back down in defeat.

"RUBBISH!"

"THAT'S RUBBISH!"

"We're not working with mudbloods!" Tom yelled into the uproar.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING MUDBLOODS, WILKES?"

"FUCK OFF, MOODY!"

"Tom, stop it!" Andi slapped his chest but he already had his wand out and threw a curse at the back of the Gryffindor's head.

But quick on his heels, he spun, blocked it and sent another back, hitting Tom square on in the chest knocking him, and Andromeda, backwards over the fence and landing with a hard crunch against the gravel.

It was like those slow motion moments in films. That was the only thing looking back Ted could compare it to.

"Alastor Moody! Detention!"

"I'll teach him to curse someone when their back is turned! Pathetic scum!"

"Alastor!" Dumbledore yelled and the Gryffindor grumbled and stuffed his wand back into his pocket and picked up his bags and books and headed towards the exit of the clearing.

Andi raised a hand to her forehead feeling dizzy as she sat up, her other hand however was being held by someone else's. Her vision blurry and her senses muddled, she assumed who it was and didn't care none the less.

"Tom, I told you, Moody's a fast one, you've got to watch him-"

"Mr Tonks! Take Miss Black to the hospital wing, Mr Humes, Mr Kipps take Mr Wilkes there too. Now as for the rest of you, sit back down, get out your textbooks. The lesson is about to begin, and with only two weeks left of term and your mocks in January, I wouldn't waste your time…"

_Mr Tonks?_

She rubbed that point between her eyebrows before opening her eyes and she saw that Tom wasn't holding her hand, he was struggling to sit up next to her but… Ted. Ted was holding her hand.

_Ted is holding your hand_.

There was then a mumbled sentence from behind her that was from Tom.

"Don't you touch her you filthy mudblo-" but there was another crunch of dead weight again as another spell his face causing him to fall unconscious to the ground.

"Got your back, Tonks." Moody winked, hiding his wand again before slapping Ted's back on his way out.

"Thanks Al." Ted chuckled as he half shook his head and smiled that crooked smile Andi hadn't seen in four years. "Can you stand, Andi?"

"I think so…" She murmured as she pulled herself to her feet .

The two Ravenclaw boys who were enlisted to carry Tom's body to the hospital wing groaned as they lifted his dead weight. No matter how skinny or toned he was, dead weight was the worst. Andi took one step and stumbled and she felt strong arms slip around her waist and hold her steady. At any other point, she would have been analysing every move of his, decoding what his fingers on her hips meant, and how they would normally make her feel. And probably slap him for laughing. But the back of her head was throbbing and it was sending pain through her whole body, and she knew even after this passed, she would have the most horrific headache.

"Watch ya-self, Miss Black. I can carry you if you want."

"Don't be stupid, Ted. You aren't strong enough." She took another step and nearly fell again, her head spinning.

He whisked her into his arms and laughed.

"I think you forget I'm not the short skinny 12 year old still."

She didn't say another word. The effort was too much, both in speaking, and processing that she was having a conversation with Ted.

Next thing she registered was that Madame Hyperon was giving her a potion as she sat on the edge of a bed, holding a cold compress on the back of her head where it had connected with the ground.

"Is Tom going to be okay?" She asked, still fuzzy.

"Yes, the hex didn't cause any damage, it was more the fall. Keeping him in overnight may be required but for the minute, he should be ready to go by the end of the day."

"That's good." She murmured as Matron walked away and indeed went to attend on Tom.

"Out by tonight? That's good, won't be missing his date then."

"Date?" Andi frowned, completely baffled now.

"Well, he's your boyfriend isn't he? The way you were leaning into his chest and his had his arm around your shoulder and how he jumped to your defence when I held your hand."

She shook her head. "Why did you hold my hand?"

"So he is your boyfriend…" Ted stood up and went to walk out.

"No, Ted, he isn't actually. Just a friend."

Ted turned an cocked an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, really."

He remained stood, shoving his hands deep in his pockets as he surveyed her.

"You didn't answer my question."

"What?"

"Why did you hold my hand?"

Ted bit his lip, smiling slightly and did a quick spin on the spot, pulling his hands from his pockets and making a jazz-hands like gesture.

"No idea."

She raised her eyebrows at him. "No idea? So… the urge just hit you." She made her own jazz-hand like gesture, pulling the compress from her head. She winced after a second and then he was suddenly sat in-front of her, taking a new flannel from the bowl of ice cold water, wringing it out and then lifting his hand to press the cloth to the back of her head.

"About there?"

"D-Down a bit…" She whispered. He moved the cloth as so and smiled.

"Yeah. I guess the urge just hit me."

"Ted-"

"I just hate seeing you get hurt… Do you remember, at the end of first year, when you fell over in DADA when we were practising and you scraped your knees so badly and I ran straight to Madame Hyperon and got you bandages and all sorts."

"I can't believe you remember that…" she half giggled. "You looked like a mummy by the time you got back you were so tangled up. And Professor had already healed them."

He laughed too. He looked at her face, moving from eye to eye, then her nose and down to her lips, and whether he meant to or not, he moistened his own lower lip with his tongue as he did so.

"Mr. Tonks, I think you better head back to class." Madame Hyperon raised an eyebrow as she disappeared off into her office.

Ted sighed and went to stand. He passed Andi the flannel he was holding and, again, licked his lip.

"Andi…"

"Don't Ted… Please… just don't."

She looked down at her lap, pressing the cloth to her head again and sighing. She was too fuzzy to register anything properly right now. The butterflies in her stomach, they were from her dizziness surely. Or the potion she had just had. Yes. That's what it was.

"Okay." He whispered after a moment before nodding. He stood and turned to leave.

Andi sighed and swung her legs up onto the bed and sat back, closing her eyes, listening to his fading footsteps.

The tears she could feel prickling the inside of her eyelids were from the pain still coursing through her head. They had to be. She had no other reason to cry. No other reason.

She then felt a weight beside her as the mattress dipped.

"You awake then, Tom?"

"That's the second time today you've called me that…"

Her eyes shot open and she half gasped.

"Are you sure he isn't your boyfriend?" He said sarcastically, rolling his blue eyes.

"He definitely isn't-" She murmured but he cut her off, with his lips.

The kiss was the most passionate one she had ever felt.

Ted wasn't the only guy she had kissed. The rest had been at parties or functions, more when the pure-blood aristocrats had had one too many Firewhiskeys and had dragged her off in failed attempts to woo her. Bella was always there, to curse them when they got too forceful or rough, not that she couldn't handle the situations herself.

But this passion was different. It wasn't alcohol fuelled or sex-driven; it was gentle in its approach. It was full of… she couldn't explain it… but, yearning.

Her hand fell from her head, dropping the flannel with abandon, as her fingers snaked their way up his chest, one hand taking hold of his tie, the other continuing up to his hair. Their mouths opened and she moaned at the contact of tongues as he pulled her closer his fingers again on her hip, the other tangling in her hair.

He brushed over her grazed scalp and she pulled away screwing up her face in pain.

"Sorry." Ted whispered.

And with his words, the reality hit her and she shuffled back, like she had after her first kiss from him. Her hands shot to her lips, her fingers shaking.

"No… I… I'm sorry…."

He was smiling. He was so happy.

"Why should you be sorry?" He raised a hand to graze her cheek but she caught it and pushed it away.

"I can't Ted…" her lip wavered. "N-nothing's changed."

And so very like before, so very like four years ago, his smile vanished.


	4. Changing Nothing

There came a groan from Tom's bed and Andi sat up, scrubbing any remaining tears from her cheeks.

"Black?"

"Hey, Tom."

He groaned again raising his hand to his brow. "I'm gonna get Moody if it's the last thing I do."

"You're stupid, Moody's the fastest of the whole lot."

"Where's that mudblood from the clearing gone?" He sat up and looked around the empty wing.

"Oh... I don't know. Like I care." She spat spitefully, as if trying to convince herself that that was the truth.

Tom darkly laughed.

"Scuttled off back to his hole if he's got any sense."

"Yeah..."

Andi begun to pick off the last of her nail polish, determined not to cry again as Tom talked to himself about how he hated Gryffindors and mudbloods.

* * *

_"It's cool." _

_Anger bubbled up inside Andi at his words._

_"Cool? Cool Ted? Really? Is that the only response you can give?!"_

_"What else am I meant to say?" He got up from the bed and began pacing up and down the wing._

_"I don't know! You can't just going around kissing people!"_

_"You kissed me back."_

_She spluttered. "T-That's beside the point." He laughed. "Do you think this is a joke Ted, do you really think this is funny?!"_

_"You kissed me back, Andi. If nothing had changed then you should have pushed me off and sent me away with my tail between my legs."_

_"Don't you _dare_ put this on me! I didn't ask you to kiss me! And even if I had it's not my fault my senses are a little goofed up after your twat of a bodyguard nearly knocked me out!"_

_"Don't blame Moody, he was only standing up for all of us-"_

_"Moody's a twat and you know it."_

_"No he isn't, that just what all you snobs think!"_

_"Snobs?" She laughed in despair. "So I'm a snob now am I?"_

_"I didn't mean that-"_

_"Well then, what did you mean?"_

_He scoffed and ran a hand through his messy hair._

_"I don't know, okay?"_

_"Oh well, that makes everything alright then doesn't it!"_

_"Come on Dromeda don't be like that-"_

_"Don't call me Dromeda!" She threw the pillow at him and it hit him square in the face with a muffled thud._

_There was an awkward silence as she scowled at him as he picked up the pillow, throwing it lightly back at her to land on the end of her bed._

_"Ted..." She sighed and looked away from him. "Nothing's changed as in I'm still really confused."_

_He sat back down on the end of the bed and looked at her through sad eyes._

_"After four years. You're still confused?"_

_"Yes. No, I mean, I..." She moaned and shook her head. "No offense Ted, but I've moved on, I'm not a kid anymore."_

_"Neither am I. Andi... Ever since Tuesday, I just can't get you out of my head. You're just, there. All the time. It's like I'm 12 again. And it's driving me mad!"_

_"And you're driving me mad! You just don't get it do you?! I can't okay, I just can't!"_

_Angry tears stung her eyes and as she blinked they fell from her lashes and rolled down her cheek._

_He leant forward and stroked her cheek softly. Oh Merlin his hands were soft. His touch was already like a drug. _

_She had seen in her prefect duties what Pixie Dust did to students, how upon her raids they would beg her to let them keep even the tiniest bit to get them by - she never did- but it was only now she understood the desperation behind it._

_Not that she would admit it to herself but she so desperately wanted Ted to keep touching her. To never let her go. But her head, even with its haze, was screaming for her to get out, to jinx the mudblood jerk and tell him to never talk to her again._

"_Why can't it happen?"_

"_Don't make me say it. You know why."_

"_If I wasn't a mudblood, we wouldn't be having this conversation would we."_

_"No, but we are, I mean you are a… I've told you, Ted. Don't call yourself that."_

"_Why no-"_

"_Because…"_

"_Because?"_

"_Because you're so much better than them…"_

_There was a pause as Andi closed her eyes and sighed. _

_"Do you remember what I said to you after our first kiss? When you asked me why..." _

I feel… I think we're meant to kiss.

_She nodded as she opened her eyes. He smiled ever so slightly. "Nothing's changed." _

_Ted ran his fingers down her cheek and around the back of her neck, pulling her closer. And she didn't resist, letting him kiss her lips again and letting his tongue explore her mouth once more._

_This kiss was sweeter than the last, more affectionate, and feelings hit her hard. Butterflies killed her stomach again and she kissed him back, shuffling closer to him, his thumb rubbing gentle circles on her neck. Her whole body felt at ease; it was a strange sensation, one she had never felt during a kiss before, not even in his last one. Everything seemed right for once in her life. She half sighed, wrapping her arms around him as he stroked her lower back. It was as if he was trying to comfort her confused soul- No, not comfort. _Convince._ She lost track of how long the kiss lasted, and with every second it carried on, he was getting closer and closer to convincing her to do the unspeakable._

_She put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him away, just ever so lightly and he moved away, leaving her lips tingling and her heart-beat ringing in her ears._

_Andi looked into his eyes, into that gorgeous deep blue in which she could have easily gotten lost, and ran a hand through his hair._

_"You... You're my friend, Ted."_

_He nodded, her hoping that he would somehow grasp how confused she still was and Andi was surprised at how much it was actually hurting herself saying it._

_He stood up, prizing himself away from her and he reached the door._

_He turned, straightening his tie and doing up his grey cardigan, and pain stabbed through her heart as he smiled sadly back at her._

_"We haven't been friends for four years."_

_And with that, Ted was gone._

* * *

She had cried for goodness knows how long afterwards, she couldn't control nor stop it, no matter how hard she tried. Her heart was aching and her lips burning as much as her sore eyes. Sporadic images, feelings and memories where flicking in and out of her mind as swiftly as they had entered. And they were all about Ted. She had admitted it. If it wasn't for his heritage she would have admitted to herself and to him how much she liked him. How horrific was that? Not being with someone because of what they were born...

_Pull yourself together._

"What's up, Black?"

"Huh?"

"You've been staring into space for the last half hour. You feeling okay? Want me to get Matron?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Fine?"

"Yes, fine okay Tom, will you get off my back?" She snapped.

He laughed.

"You really are a bitch sometimes, Black." He cocked an eyebrow as he leant back against his pillow.

"Really?" Andi shrunk back into herself, picking the last of her nail polish off.

Tom frowned. "I was joking." He sat up again. "What's eating ya?"

"We're friends aren't we Tom?"

"Yeah…" He looked puzzled as he smiled at her.

"Can I ask a favour?"

"Depends."

She stood up, steady on her feet now the dizziness was fading. She walked over to his bed and sat down next to him.

"I just… I just need to figure something out. To try something."

"Okay. Honestly though Black, how hard did you hit your head-"

Andi leant forward and pressed her lips to his. Her hands shot to his dark, gelled hair, and she ran them through it momentarily pulling herself closer to him in a false passion, but she already had her answer. After that few seconds she pulled away and rubbed her frowning brow.

"Sorry."

"That's alright…" His expression of shock turned into a frown as he watched her pull away from him completely.

Andi stood back up and went back to her bed, curling up and draping her cloak over herself as a blanket.

"Andi, we gonna talk about what just happened?"

"You're right Tom, I just…" He didn't see the tear roll down her face and onto her pillow "I guess I hit my head really hard."

Nothing. She felt nothing. Nothing when kissing Tom. This gorgeous pure-blood that so many of the girls desired, (which her parents would naturally regard as an acceptable suitor), had no effect on her whatsoever. No skip of heartbeat, or butterflies or sweaty palms. No fireworks. It felt so unnatural. His hair was too neat and slick, not scruffy and slightly knotty and _oh Merlin absolutely silk soft_. His lips were nice, yeah. But was 'nice' a good description? _They weren't indulgent like his were…_

_Why are you doing this to yourself? This can't ever happen._

* * *

"Why are you doing this to yourself?" Frank sat there on his bed, his head in his hands as Ted paced up and down in-front of him, eating chocolate frog after chocolate frog. "Ted, it's just not going to happen alright? It was two kisses."

"Yeah but," he swallowed then waved the frog's still half twitching leg at Frank before sticking it in his mouth and mumbling through his chocolate, "technically there's been three _and_ she admitted if I wasn't a muggle-born-"

"You are a muggle-born! And you want a girl that wants you regardless of it, if not for it."

Ted just flopped down onto his yellow duvet, ripping open a packet of Bertie Botts.

"Look. Ted, she's a Black. She from one of the most aristocratic families there is. I don't know how many times I'm going to have to say it, it's just not going to happen."

"What's not going to happen?"

"Nothing, Ed."

Edgar Bones shut the door to the boy's dorms as he chucked his bag at his bed and raised an eyebrow at Frank.

"Ted's suddenly got this thing for Andromeda Black."

"One of the Black sisters, are you crazy?!"

Frank cocked his head to the side and gestured to Ted who just scoffed and crossed his arms tightly around his chest.

"Look, Teddy, if this just 'cause you're the last one out of us to not have a girlfriend, I'm sure Charlie or Alice could set you up with someone-"

"It's not cause you've just got with Charlotte, like I'm really happy for you both. But this isn't just a sudden thing, I've been thinking about it nearly all week. And for the record I've had lots of girlfriends."

Frank and Ed both burst out into fits of laughter as Ed sunk down to sit on the end of Frank's bed. Ted throwing beans at them then laughing with them.

"I have! You just don't know them because they're muggles from back home and they've only ever lasted over summer as I'm not into that long-distance relationship thing.

"Whatever." Ed winked stuffing three of the beans into his mouth and then grimaced. "Urgh, broccoli."

Ted laughed before sitting up and facing his two friends properly.

"Look, there is just this whole history there with her, and this… connection that I can't explain." He stared off into the distance smiling slightly as he remembered the slight strawberry taste to her lips. "We kissed twice today and-"

"Woah, you kissed?"

"Yeah..."

"I wouldn't go shouting about that if I were you mate, do you have any idea what Bitchytrix and Narcisstic would do to you?!"

"I don't care. I just… need to think of a proper way of showing her we can be together, and today that wasn't right. She, I… She needs more time."

"Bloody hell. You're actually being serious aren't you?"

Ted nodded.

"He's completely smitten and won't listen to anything." Frank rolled his eyes and sat back against his headboard as Ted sarcastically smiled before flipping him the finger.

"You need to listen to the fact that you're from two different worlds. It's completely forbidden, and don't go all 'Romeo and Juliet' on us because they kill themselves in the end."


	5. A Summer's Day in Winter

"Andi, seriously, what is with you? Just sit down and enjoy the weather for Merlin's sake."

Andi looked down at her blonde sister, who was resting back on her hands and soaking in the rare sun's rays.

"Fine."

She sat down in the grass and pulled her hair back from her face, tying it up in a high ponytail extenuating her sharp features. She reached into her bag and pulled out her red nail polish, sighing when she pulled the brush out and no polish came off.

"You've finished that?"

"It looks it." Andi sarcastically snapped, throwing the bottle violently into the lake. There came a grumble from the water and then it ended up at her feet again. She groaned and lay back against the grass, rubbing her temples repetitively.

"Why have you been in such a foul mood since Friday? I know you hit your head and everything, but it's the weekend, Christmas holidays are in two weeks and it's sunny. Just relax."

"Oh well, because it's sunny the world is automatically a better place. It's Winter for Merlin's sake, I don't want a sunny day, I want snow and cold and other miserable people."

"If you're going to be like this Andromeda, I'm going to go find better company."

"Why don't you then Cissy. Go find pretty boy."

Narcissa groaned in annoyance and lay back next to her sister, playing with a strand of Andromeda's hair that had come loose.

"What's going on sweetie… you're going to get permanent nose wrinkles you've been thinking so much."

"Well thanks." Andi half smiled and moved her fingers from her temple to her nose, rubbing her spot where her nose always furrowed. But that fact didn't help. _Ted was the first to notice your thinking face._

"I mean it. I'm not like Bella… you can talk to me."

Andi turned her head to face her sister, who was smiling sweetly at her. It was again a side to Narcissa that never normally left her bedroom. Narcissa was so cool and collected in public. Nothing ever got to her and seemingly because of that everything went perfect for her.

"How do you know what you're like Cissy? How do you know you're not like Bella? Or not like any other person at this school." _Or not like any mudblood…_

She sighed letting go of Andi's hair before sitting up.

"I don't know."

There was a silence as Andi closed her eyes, momentarily feeling a pang of guilt for back-chatting to her sister, who was just trying to help.

"I guess the people closest to you know you better than you know yourself."

"What?"

Andi sat up, broken from her reverie at Narcissa's words.

"I was chatting with Lu the other day and he was saying something similar, it's like, everyone thinks he's this arrogant bully with fast broomsticks and thousands of galleons. I mean…" She pouted slightly and smiled as if remembering something he said "he_ is_ all those things… But he's different when he's around me. Like I am around you. I know who he is, the layers of who he is. He never even used to register that he had that nicer side, until I told him he did."

Andi smiled at her sister.

"For fifteen, you really are smart."

"I'm not just a pretty face."

Narcissa smiled resting her head on her sister's shoulder.

"Now are you going to tell me what's up?"

"Nothing, Cissy. Honestly. Just…"

Ted and his friends suddenly came into view just further down the bank. He was so happy… this obviously wasn't affecting him at all. She hadn't slept the last two nights since the kisses. And when she finally had dozed off from pure exhaustion, either at night or in the middle of writing her History of Magic essay, he was there; kissing her again in her dreams.

She felt her heart ache and tears prickle her eyes as he and another boy threw a friend of his in the lake, and then, as he laughed, wrapped his arms around the waist of this really… pretty… blonde girl.

_Jealous. You actually feel jealous._

Why the hell did he do this to her. Ruin her life. If it was this time last week, she would have been sat here, laughing with her sister, bitching about something or other, rolling her eyes at the goofy mudblood Hufflepuffs who were actually stupid enough to throw and push each other in the lake.

"Just?"

"Just… time of the month I guess."

"Well, you know there are potions for that." Narcissa giggled.

"Shut up, Cissy."

She sat there, not able to take her eyes off him. His arms weren't around that slut's waist anymore but he was now on one knee serenading her as they all laughed. She pouted and frowned, her eyes narrowing and her fists clenching. Narcissa starting talking about something, Andi vaguely heard the words "Bella" and "hex" but it was going in one ear and out the other as she scowled at Ted, judging his every move. _He is such an idiot_. It wasn't even that hot. Yes this much sun in December was a miracle, but there was no need for him to take his shirt off and dive in the lake to join his friend. Let alone that blonde girl dive in after him then them all splash each other laughing and joking around.

He started swimming backstroke towards where they were sat. Andi was fighting every bone in her body to get up and move away from him.

"Andi, you okay, you've really tensed up."

"Uh-huh…"

"Ted! Get your arse back here, I'm not done!"

"Mar, leave off!" He laughed back starting to tread water waiting for the blonde to catch up.

She reached Ted and then jumped on him pushing him under water, before then climbing on his shoulders as another boy with a girl on his shoulders swam over.

"WATER WRESTLING TIME!" The brunette girl with a pixie crop yelled, laughing as she did so.

"It's on Alice!" The blonde called Mar yelled back.

Andi sat there, getting more and more frustrated as she watched them play fight each other. Narcissa seemed to finally notice the game unfolding in front of her after Mar fell into the water and the other team screamed victory. But everything was fuzzy and Andi's stomach knotted itself as Ted held Mar in his arms as she spluttered, regaining her breath.

"So immature." Narcissa rolled her eyes as the victorious girl pulled off her shirt, leaving her in her red bra as she tied her Gryffindor tie around her head.

However the Alice girl saw Narcissa's look of disgust and yelled back at them.

"Oh get over yourself, Black! Just because you don't know how to have fun!"

Narcissa stood and pouted with a snide smile in her eyes.

"Oh I know how to have fun, just with my shirt on. Come on Andi, before I throw up at the sight."

However it was at Alice's mention of "Black" that Ted turned his head and caught eyes with Andromeda.

He immediately pushed Mar out of his arms and almost began to swim towards the bank. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but he could see the damage he had already done as Andi looked away, determined not to cry or even show any sign of emotion. She wouldn't give him- _who obviously didn't care and had just been trying to get a reaction from you, probably just to laugh with his precious friends about it_- the satisfaction.

The bell chimed two in the background and she stood, taking her sisters arm.

"Yeah, let's go to lunch, I'm hungry."

* * *

"I thought you said you were hungry?"

Andi rolled her eyes as she pushed her pasta around her plate.

"If you've got cramps, I've got some potion back in my dorm. It clears them up instantly, Severus is amazing at Potions, you have no idea."

"Nah, it's okay, Cissy. Thanks anyways."

"What do you want to do this afternoon?"

"Mope."

"Seriously?"

"Yep." Andi sighed, finally eating a mouthful. "I'll probably go to the library, I have a ton of work to do."

"I don't envy you at all."

"Just you wait till your OWLs next year." Andi smiled eating one more mouthful before picking up her bag and standing. "See you later."

"See you." But Narcissa had already turned to greet Severus Snape who had sat down beside her, looking as miserable as Andi felt.

She plodded along out of the Great Hall, just turning the corner to head up the stairs when she felt strong hands grab her shoulders and whip her off her feet. Next thing she knew she was up against the left corridor wall, her wand out and in her assailant's face.

"Woah, calm down."

"Calm down? Calm down?! Who the hell are you to tell me to calm down, and get your filthy hands off me-"

"Okay… Okay."

He pulled his arms away from her, raising them in defeat as she stuffed her wand back in her pocket, straightening in her shirt and cloak.

"What do you want, Ted."

"I wanted to explain."

She did her best Narcissa impression as she stared at him completely blank, refusing to show him any sign of hurt or weakness. "Explain what. What do I care if you want to fool around with some blonde."

"We're not fooling around, we're just friends, that's just how me and Mar are."

Andi rolled her eyes, squeezing past him and already striding away down the corridor, her jaw set and fists clenched.

"Andi, Andi come back… look…" he caught up with her and whispered to her as they walked, "you know how much you mean to me…"

"How much I mean to you? Actually, Ted, I don't because you kiss me a few times and then you tell me how 'we haven't been friends for the last four years' I mean, how do you think that made me felt?"

"Look, I'm sorry, I just didn't handle the fact that we can't be together well."

"At least we agree on one thing then."

"What?"

"We can't be together. There I said it. Now run off back to your perfect little friends and leave me alone." She turned to him and glared as she walked, eventually looking away hoping he would stop and turn around. But he didn't. He walked by her side for a good minute before anything further was said.

"I am sorry Andi. And… you do mean a lot to me."

"Why are you doing this to me, Ted? Other than being a bitch to everyone generally, what have I done that is so… _horrific_ that _you_ want to make _my life_ hell?"

That was when he stopped walking, and despite her brain's urgency to continue on, her legs stopped too. He looked her up and down before ducking into a small, deserted corridor to their left. He beckoned her into it as she let out an exasperated sigh. But before she knew what she was doing, she was stood there in front of him, one eyebrow raised her arms crossed tightly across her chest.

"What." She stared at him. "Oh is it a surprise to you that I have been going insane since Friday? You're a lucky guy that can joke with your friends and go swimming in the Black Lake not caring that you could easily be drowned by merpeople or Callumari or-"

"Callumari?"

"It's what we call the squid-"

"Oh my God, that is so cute!" He looked at her through affectionate eyes and smiled at her. She half smiled back before relaxing into her posture a little bit more.

"It's not that cute, I mean, some girl made it up years ago cause he sleeps outside our portholes-" she shook her head and stood up straight again prodding his chest with one of her fingers. "No! That's not the point! We aren't talking about the squid okay? The point is that you are all fun and games and you have no _idea_ what is at stake here! You're muggle-born, I'm from one of the most ruthless pure-blood families there is, my name is dating back to, like, Merlin's time for Christ sake! My parents would literally kill me-"

"And yet you're not going to stop me from doing this."

"Doing what-"

He pushed her up against the wall and captured her lips with his. Every thought in her head vanished as she felt him trace her lower lip with his tongue and her arms wrapped around his neck pulling him closer as he kissed her with such heated ferocity. Every kiss she shared with him was different, it was new, it was exciting, she had never felt more wanted or desired or… _turned on_ as he kissed her. This time their teeth clashed as she moaned and his hands continued moving south from her shoulders to her lower back and then her—

She pushed him off and raised a hand to her mouth her finger once again poking his chest. "See! You're doing it again! This is exactly what I mean, you kiss me like this, then you're going to waltz off back to your pretty blonde friend and have a good old laugh about this while I can't get you out of my head and…"

He was slowly leaning in again, inching closer to face.

"And… I… Ted you're not listening…" His lips were virtually touching hers again.

"Andi… I don't laugh with my friends about you. You're right, you have no idea how much you mean to me because I haven't shown you. And I want to show you, more than anything. I've wanted to show you since we were twelve."

"But we're not twelve anymore, Teddy. You're messing with grown-up feelings and grown up things as if you are still that little boy…"

"Do you have feelings for me Dromeda?"

"I…" She looked into his eyes and closed hers, feeling tears prickle them. "I _can't _have feelings for you. I'm sorry." She ducked under his arm on the wall and went to walk away, but he grabbed her hand and she felt him place a small package into it.

"Can't doesn't mean you don't."

He kissed her cheek and then was gone, leaving her there bewildered as she looked at the little brown paper covered parcel in her hand. She stuffed it into her robe pocket and momentarily began to head towards the library, before shaking her head deciding an afternoon languishing in front of the fire in the common room was more appealing than attempting to write a Potions essay.


	6. Tis But a Gamble

She angrily poked at the fireplace's coals. No one had bothered to keep the flames going this morning with the weather. Despite that fact though, the marble common room was still chilly even after chucking a spell into the fire. Andi threw her bag and cloak onto the sofa, not that she needed to save her seat; there wasn't a single soul in the common room. She assumed this was either because of the sun or lunch, but either way she had the expansive room to herself. The brunette walked out of the common room and down the steps into the corridor of girls' dorms before entering the third door on the left. She pulled off her robes (for despite the fact it was Sunday, the 6th and 7th years often had either extra classes or Prefect duties which uniform was required for) and stepped into a loose floor length dress, taking down her hair before re-doing it in a high loose bun. She sighed, grabbing her favourite book from under her pillow and tucking it under her arm as she left the room, touching her lips still feeling him upon them.

She reached the top step and frowned as she heard a wimpy sob coming from the fireplace's direction.

"Hello?"

There was a sudden scramble of feet as a mop of greasy black hair popped up from the sofa.

"Severus?"

The teen wiped his nose on his black hankie before stuffing it in his pocket. He stood, straightening his black shirt and he began to hastily walk towards Andi, obviously aiming for the staircase to the boy's dorm just behind her. As he got closer, she noticed he was covered in tomato sauce, and even had the odd bit of pasta in his hair.

Andi caught his arm as he went to push past her, and held it tight.

"Severus, who did this to you?"

He just bit his lip and looked down as she pulled the spaghetti from his hair. She guided him back over to the emerald green leather sofa and sat down with him in front of the green and blue flames which were now dancing over the black coals.

"Was this Sirius? Because you know Cissy and I are at breaking point with him when it comes to this. Does she know? Narcissa I mean."

He shrugged. "It's got worst in the last two weeks as she's been hanging around with Lucius more and more. Because they never used to touch me when I was with him or her, and now they won't even stop in-front of Lily. Bloody Potter trying to impress her."

"Oh Severus…" She got out her wand. "Scourgify."

He mumbled a thank you before pulling out his hankie again.

"By Lily you mean…?"

"The ginger girl in mine and Narcissa's year."

"Oh you mean the mud—" Andi cut herself off. "Sorry that was rude."

"You… you're apologising for calling Lily a mudblood?"

"Why, would you rather me call her one?"

Severus looked as baffled as anything before his eyes narrowed. "No… I just. It's odd. Not even Cissy holds back when it comes to me hanging around with her."

Andi bit her own lip. She couldn't deny that her attitude towards even using the word had changed. Especially in the last few days. Her mind began to wander as the silence continued, and her lips burned to ask him the question that she had been asking herself so frequently about Ted.

"Why do you hang around with her if she's a mudblood? Doesn't it just make life complicated and… messy?"

"She's no different. She's top in half of her classes-"

"No I mean, like for _you_. Ignoring the Gryffindors, I know Narcissa says Avery particularly gives you hell for it."

"She means more to me than they do."

"But if it came down to it, would you choose her over everyone else?"

"Yes, because I lov-" he cut himself off and swallowed. "She is better than her blood. She outshines that fact a hundred times over. And she is just as much like you or me."

There was another silence as Andi pushed a loose strand of hair from her face.

"What if… what if you weren't sure of how you felt Severus? What if you weren't sure?"

"Then I would give myself the chance to become sure. If you don't give the person the chance, how do you know whether they are worth more than their blood status?"

Andi nodded slowly, rubbing the wrinkled spot on the bridge of her nose. Severus stood, grabbing his bag and heading back towards the dorms.

"Severus?"

"Yes?"

"Would you mind if… If Narcissa, or anyone for that matter, didn't hear of this?"

"Sure, it's forgotten. But thank you, Andromeda."

He turned and descended the stairs as Andi turned back to the fireplace.

"No… thank you." She mumbled to herself.

Andi pulled her knees up to her chest, re-draping the deep blue dress over her knees and bare toes. The flames seem to hypnotise her as they flickered and licked teasingly against the iron grate and marble tiles. She picked up her book and it automatically fell open to her favourite chapter. The one where Morgana realised Merlin had loved her all along but she had gone too far and become too cruel. All fiction of course, it was historically unlikely that Merlin and the dark Morgan Le Fey had ever had any feelings for each other. Both known members of Slytherin, like herself, she had always admired both characters. Merlin's heart _and_ Morgana's determination to avenge Morgause, no matter the pain it caused her lover.

They knew what they wanted, whether it was right or not.

_I wish I knew what I wanted…_

Her eyes darted over the ink words on the paper, and for once not a single word went in. She got to the end of the chapter and, if she didn't know the book so well, she would have had no recollection of what happened. She closed the book with a sigh and lay back against the leather, closing her eyes.

"_Every lover is just a stranger until given the chance to woo, Merlin. And for that chance to arise, a door in one's soul must open."_

She didn't know what made Gwaine's quote from chapter eight pop into her mind, but she suddenly snapped out of her trance and lunged for her cloak, her fingers shaking as they fumbled to find the pocket. She yanked the small brown parcel out of the fabric and her nails ripped at the paper.

A gasp escaped her lips as she held the bottle in her hand, the deep crimson of her nail polish that she had completely used up in the last week since their reunion. Apart from the bottle was now full.

She slouched back into the cushions with a sigh, a small smile spreading across her lips. She opened the bottle and dragged the brush across her thumbnail, the colour staining the peach nail to red.

When she had finished, she sat forward gazing at them momentarily before looking up to the flames.

"_Ah but to open that door, Sir Gwaine, tis but a gamble."_

"_A gamble?" The knight swallowed the crimson wine from his goblet before he moved from his chair and stood, circling his friend like a hawk, his smug smile humouring Merlin's wit and failure to accept the basest of feelings._

"_A gamble, for one does not know what awaits on the other side. Be it love… or desolation."_

A gamble; that's what Ted was. A gamble.

She couldn't deny the feelings that overwhelmed her being when she saw him. Yearning. Desire. Jealousy when he was with that blonde. Security… She remembered the security and comfort she had felt during their second kiss in the hospital wing. Her fingers found her lips, and she ran her index finger over her lower one, now remembering how his tongue had moved over it just an hour or so ago…

She shook her head, pushing the loose strands of hair up and out of her face. Should she do what Severus said? Give both herself and Ted the chance to discover and become sure of their feelings?

_He is a fourteen year old boy. What does he know?_

She let out a groan of desperation as she stood, throwing the brown paper wrapping into the fire, watching the flames devour the paper as it writhed and turned to ash.

What if she became sure? The problem was, her heart honestly didn't know what she wanted the outcome to be. To be sure that Ted was just some mudblood and her family, dignity and morals where worth so much more… Or that he was the…

"No. Stop it."

She said that to herself more than anything else these days. It was the only thing that seemed to momentarily push him to the dark unreachable corners of her mind.

* * *

Ted sat there at dinner, eating more food than he had been recently, but he still wasn't eating his normal mound of mash and meat.

Mar sat there opposite him, her eyes narrowed as she tried to figure out what was wrong with her best friend. He was acting so strange. Like in the lake earlier when he had pushed her away…

She didn't have romantic feelings for Ted, don't get her wrong. Not at all- everyone always asked about it, but honestly, it was as if he was a gay best friend. But she didn't like being out of the loop. Marlene McKinnon always knew everything about everyone – rarely used it as gossip mind you- but the fact there was obviously something going on, and additionally that Frank and Ed both knew about it, was really bugging her.

"Teddy."

"Huh?"

"Alice just asked if you were okay."

"Yeah, um, never better."

"Really? You've barely spoken to any of us in the last few days." Mar murmured as she took a bite.

"I'm sorry, honestly, you've done nothing babe, I promise."

"Okay."

He grinned, downed the pumpkin juice and stood hastily, leaving the table without another word.

"Ted!" She yelled after him, but he was already at the end of the table and about to leave through the Great Hall door.

* * *

Andi was alone as she walked up the staircase from the Common Room towards the Great Hall. As she reached the top step, she saw him walk by and, she had no idea why she did it, or how her brain didn't even register it, but she called his name, a little too loudly.

Ted spun on his heel and turned to see her there, already rubbing her brow as blush flooded her cheeks and she swore under her breath. As he replied her name, she looked up and half smiled, but he could see the uncertainty in her eyes.

"I've been thinking, Ted."

"Okay."

She looked around to check they were alone, and after she saw some other Slytherins begin ascending the stairs, she walked out and over to a little corridor, with stone seats and archways just west of where they were.

She sat down and looked at him, crossing her left leg over her right.

"It's like what you said earlier, can't doesn't mean I don't… you know… I…" she groaned.

"So you do have feelings for me?" He grinned his cheeky smile as his hands reached his pockets and he hunched over slightly as he approached her further.

"I… I don't know Ted. I just don't know how I feel right now."

"I see you got the nail polish."

She looked down to see she had already begun to pick it off, and then half smiled up at him.

"Thank you."

"Welcome."

There was a momentary silence as he sat down opposite her. He watched her as she contemplated something, then was dragged out of this thought by a strand of hair tickling her face. She pulled it, twisted it and then tucked it into the bun atop her head. After this, she rubbed her thinking spot once more and then raised her head with pride and stared into his eyes.

"One date."

"What?" He looked perplexed.

"One date, that's what you'll get. It will give me the chance to… figure things out."

He grinned again, licking his lip slowly before running a hand through his hair.

"Are you asking me out, Miss Black?"

"Shut up Ted or the offer is off the table."

Andi stood now crossing her arms across her chest as she frowned and pouted at him.

"What exactly would this date entail?"

She rolled her eyes before she murmured her reply. "Dinner. At the Hog's Head. Tuesday at nine."

"Okay."

"But it's purely dinner. No kissing, hugging, handholding or anything of the frivolous sort."

"Then how is that a date?"

She cocked an eyebrow and he pouted raising his hands in defeat.

"Okay, fine. Who's paying?"

"That's it. It was a stupid idea anyway."

She went to storm off but Ted stood and caught her arm in his hand.

"I accept your offer."

She wrenched her arm from his grip and straightened her dress.

"Good. Well. See you Tuesday."

"See you Tuesday."

She had a slight click to her court shoes as she walked off, not looking back once. He bit his fist and span on the spot, laughing in victory once she turned the corner. Now, he had been telling Mar the truth at the dinner table, he had honestly never been better.


	7. Living a Little

"You look amazing."

Ted stood from his bar stool to greet her as she shook the sleet from her hair and pulled her coat off. The heat wave hadn't lasted, but all the same it was one of the warmest Winters at Hogwarts Ted could remember. Hence the sleet, not snow.

She rolled her eyes as she leant against the bar. "Table under Black?"

The barman nodded.

"Table for two in the back, yes Miss?"

"Yes." She nodded back. The tall, grey haired barman stepped out from behind the counter, grabbed two menus from the rack and showed them through to the back.

Ted had never been into this part of the Hog's Head, he didn't even know it existed. It was smaller, cosier, smelt less of goats but secluded and obviously not for the eyes of the usual customers.

Andi smiled as her chair was pulled out for her, and then tucked in too, Ted a little peeved as he wished to do it for her.

"Anything to drink before you order?"

"Scotch on the rocks with a twist." Andi stated. "And…"

"Another Butterbeer will be fine." He smiled at the man, who looked oddly familiar. After he left, he turned to Andi. "Is it just me or do you recognise him?"

"Not particularly." She looked round towards the doorway he just left through. She shook her head slightly looking down at her menu.

"What are you going to have?" Ted asked, attempting to fill the awkward silence.

"Salmon looks good."

Ted wrinkled his nose in distaste, not a fan of fish unless it was smothered in batter and served with large portion of chips, he decided in his head to go with a standard manly slab of meat and two veg.

The man came back with the drinks and then asked for their food order. As she just stated, Andromeda ordered the salmon and Ted, after consulting his menu, decided on the pork chops. Just as before, he left again without another word.

_Why was this so awkward?_

He watched her as she sat there, sipping her drink looking down at her lap. It was the first time this evening he could properly take her in. He hadn't really seen her properly since Sunday when she asked him on this date._ Date_. Oh who was he kidding, this wasn't a date. He had paid her one compliment which she ignored and otherwise they had only spoken about food, the barman and drinks. _Maybe the drinks will pick the evening up_ he thought as she took a larger swig from hers. She honestly did look gorgeous. He was dying to give her a snog. Or even hold her hand. She had her nails painted a deep gold tonight, a deep grey dress on with a black corset and black heeled lace-up boots. She looked very Victorian, obviously the kind of clothes she had to wear at home. It didn't matter to him that her straightened hair, tied up in a ponytail, was slightly curly at the front where her coat hood hadn't shielded it, or that her mascara had also been smudged a little by the wetness in the air; she was still the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

"I…"

"Huh?" She looked up.

"Sorry." He chuckled under his breath. "I was just going to say how beautiful you looked."

"Don't be silly."

"What?"

"I'm not."

"Are you actually kidding me?"

"No…" She took another sip of her drink, frowning slightly.

"So you really don't think you're beautiful?"

"No. I don't."

"Well, for the sake of now, will you just accept the compliment?" She took another sip and went to say something but then just shook her head. "What were you going to say?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Right."

Again, a silence as they both took another gulp of their drinks.

"So… Andi… Where did you grow up?"

She spluttered on her drink before laughing. "What?"

"Where did you grow up?"

"Why on earth are you asking me that?"

"Because, despite your rules about PDA's and the fact we've barely spoken, this is meant to be a date, and on dates you get to know the other person."

"But you know where I grew up, Ted. We had this conversation when we first met, like, 5 years ago."

"Fine then." He smiled and leant back against his chair. "Tell me what's changed in the last however many years then. Like what subjects you study."

"Ted, this is the most pointless-"

"Just tell me!" He laughed as she finally began to crack a smile.

"Okay, fine!" She rubbed her brow pushing a small curl out of her face as she turned to him properly. "As you know, Care of Magical Creatures. Potions, Transfiguration, Ancient Runes, History of Magic-"

"You actually study that drivel?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with History of Magic?"

"Well I don't know I-" He cut off mid-sentence and collapsed back against his chair in a pretend sleep.

She laughed, and he opened an eye to see bite her lower lip and blush ever so slightly as she looked at him. This was much more like it.

"What do you study then, smartie pants?"

"Creatures," she nodded knowingly, "Potions and Transfiguration too, Charms and err, oh! Muggle Studies."

Andi looked up and paused for a moment, swallowing the mouthful of scotch.

"It's my only guaranteed O you see. Smithy and I practically end up teaching the class every session."

She went to say something, but just downed the rest of her drink before placing the empty glass back on the table.

"It's a problem isn't it? Me studying Muggle Studies…" He half-cocked an eyebrow before leaning in slightly towards her.

"Not a problem, I…" Her nose wrinkled again and he had to supress the urge to smile as she looked serious. "It's just… sometimes when I'm with you, like when we're talking like this or when we kiss-" she coughed and shook her head, before raising it again with a seemingly new sense of pride "I forget _what_, I mean, _who_ you are."

She looked away again, shielding her face with her hand, but not her mouth enough as he heard her swear under her breath, like she had on Sunday.

"Andi…" he reached over and took her hand that was still resting on the table. He was surprised as she didn't yank it away, but instead looked at him through sad, wary eyes. "I know this is really tough for you and I know it's all my fault, because if I wasn't a-"

They looked to the door as it creaked open and that was when Andi pulled her hand away sharply, and she seemed to let out a sigh of relief as the barman brought in their plates of food. They mumbled their thanks, and after Andi ordered another drink, he left once more.

"How's your food?"

"Good." She mumbled through the fish, she half smiled. "Yours?"

"Not as good as mum's back home, but yeah, nice."

"I can't remember the last time mum cooked anything. If she ever did."

"So your dad's the chef in the house then?"

"No." She half laughed. "The house-elves are much better cooks."

"You have house elves?"

She nodded. "Four or five. Changes all the time."

"Why does it change?"

"Well, Father doesn't tolerate disobedience so…" She ate another mouthful, but she had implied the consequences enough.

"And… you're okay with that? What he does to them?"

"I… I don't really know any different."

There was a silence again as they ate a few mouthfuls, Andi's drink arrived, and they ate once more.

"What if I was to show you different."

"Excuse me?"

"What if I could show you a different way of life, Dromeda. Would you want it?"

"Ted…" Her heart beat faster against her ribs. She would be lying to herself if the idea of a new life, a different life away from values, morals, poise and perfection didn't appeal to her in some form. He was right about her Father, it wasn't right the way he took the lives of elves if they did the slightest thing wrong. But her family, her friends, everything she knew and had grown up in, it couldn't all be wrong, could it?

He could see how much she was thinking this through, and how it was affecting her as she hastily scrubbed her eyes.

"If you want to talk about something else, we can."

She nodded slowly.

"Have you done that Creature's essay? I mean, did you get the message from the other Slytherins about it?"

"Oh erm… Yeah I got the message, but I haven't finished it. Gave up at the conclusion."

"But they are the easiest part!" Ted laughed. "That's where you basically re-write your intro."

"You can't just re-write your introduction. The whole point of a conclusion is to sum up what you've written, but add a new idea, like a new concept for the reader to think on after they've finished."

"Sure…" He pondered for a moment deciding the new topic of conversation. "Right, what do you like to do for fun?"

"Fun?" She frowned a little.

"Yeah fun. I know it may be a foreign concept to an upper class Slytherin, such as yourself," He winked and she chuckled. "But yeah. Fun."

"Does reading count as fun?"

"No, no it certainly doesn't." He smiled and she rolled her eyes.

"Okay then, I play the piano and I sew a bit and I guess shopping's fun."

"How very girly of you."

She laughed before finishing her last mouthful of her meal. "I like boy things too thank you… I…"

"What?"

She sighed.

"I probably find the boy things more fun actually."

"Really?"

"Don't tell anyone though okay? Image is everything."

"Cross my heart."

She pulled one of the small bread rolls out of the basket and began to mop up the herb butter that remained on her plate.

"What about you? What boy things do you find fun? Quidditch?"

"Never mind me, I know you grew into quite the Chaser. I've seen you play."

"Quidditch is just, well, I guess then it is just fun." She laughed again. "Oh Merlin, do you remember our first match in class?"

"Oh very funny, laugh at my pain!" He cocked an eyebrow and his lips curled into his crooked smile.

"You were so silly though, Ted. That bludger properly went for you."

"Look okay, Quidditch is just weird okay, I like my sports with both feet on the ground. Like football."

"What's football?"

"What's football? My my Andi, you honestly haven't lived." He swallowed his last mouthful and downed the last of his Butterbeer, Andi taking the hint to do the same with her drink. "Come on."

He jumped up, took her hand, pausing for a moment as their eyes met. For the first time she noticed the golden like glint to the blue. They were warm and inviting and she would have completely lost herself in the moment if he hadn't stroked her fingers ever so slightly. She looked down at their clasped hands as she stood herself, butterflies filling her stomach and her heart rate increasing faster than she ever swore it had.

"Live a little." Ted whispered before bearing his teeth in that grin she couldn't help but smile back at.

He dragged her out of the back room with a giggle, before releasing hands as she pulled her coat on and flicked her hood up as Ted asked for the bill at the bar. He went to pay, but Andi handed over a small velvet bag full of coins and she half skipped as she walked out of the pub and into the snow. She looked so seductive as she glanced over her shoulder at him, and- despite the fact he was still in the pub- broke into a little jog to catch up with her.

Ted began to run down the lane, Andi thought at first they were heading back to the castle, but he veered off to the left, not right.

She called his name laughing as she ran after him, hoping not to slip and fall over and make a fool of herself.

_You care, you actually care what he thinks of you._

When she caught up with him, he stood there holding, what looked like a small, black and white quaffle. There was a funny looking goalpost too, rectangular in shape, covered in netting and sat on the ground- not raised in the air like normal goal posts.

"Fancy a match, Miss Black?" He threw the ball to her and she caught it looking puzzled.

"Okay. What do I have to do?"

"Get that ball in this net."

"Sounds easy enough." She frowned suspiciously before running towards the net and throwing it in, Ted, just missing it as it hit the top right hand corner of the net. She smiled wickedly, placing her hands on her hips.

"That doesn't count." Ted smiled as her smirk vanished.

"Why not, I got it in, didn't I?"

"The clue is in the name of the game. It's called football for a reason my dear Andromeda."

"What? So you use your feet?"

"Uh-huh." He smiled as he picked up the ball from the snow, then placed it at his feet, giving it a hard enough kick to push it through the snow towards her.

She frowned as she looked at it, kicking it with her toes, it just spun off a little bit to the left. She frowned again kicking harder, but the same happened again.

"Try kicking it with the side of your foot."

She did so and it moved a little straighter and she smiled slightly. She eyed up the goalposts and kicked hard, but it missed just left of the posts.

"Stupid muggle game." She muttered under her breath. Ted moved over to the ball and dribbled it back across to her grinning.

"Don't be a spoil sport, you'll get the hang of it." He smiled and she tried to smile back, but he knew from years ago just how competitive she was.

Ted conjured up another ball, and placed it on the ground at his feet after passing the other ball to her.

"If you kind of twist your hips as you kick…" he did so and it went right into the middle of the net.

She did the same, and whilst it didn't go in the net, it was a much cleaner shot. They practised for a while more, and before he knew it they were playing against each other, kicking the ball around, laughing as they did so. She the managed to tackle the ball off him, and with a hard kick, it went flying into the top left corner of the net.

She screamed and laughed in victory.

"I did it! I can't believe I actually did it!"

"And for the premier league we have Andromeda Black! She's here all night ladies and gents!" He laughed with her too as she bounced up and down, running into his arms, jumping and wrapping her legs around his waist as he spun.

Their laughter cut out as they came to a stop. They caught their breath and she caught his eye again blushing as he slowly lowered her to the floor.

"I… I think it's time we head back…"

"I think you're right." Ted smiled sadly, brushing a curl from her face.

She looked away and pulled out of the embrace, suddenly aware of his arm around her waist. He went to wave his wand and clear the area, but she quickly ran to pick up a football.

"Do you mind? If I keep this?"

"Not at all…" He smiled as she picked it up and clutched it to her chest.

They walked back to the castle in silence, but it wasn't awkward like it had been before, they were quite content to just be in each other's company once again, _just like the old days…_

Ted walked Andi to the top of the Slytherin steps and smiled again.

"Better make this quick, before we get caught. Wouldn't want that to happen." He winked as he stuffed his hands deep into his pockets leant into her slightly. And for once she didn't pull away, just smiled back up at him, still holding the football in her arms.

"I… I had a really good time tonight, Ted. Had a lot of fun."

"Me too. Thanks for dinner."

"You're welcome." There was a slight pause before Andi turned to descend the stairs, she got about half way before she turned to look up into the corridor again, he was stood there, leaning against the wall watching her go. "See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Of course."


	8. Being a Respectable Girl

"You seem extremely perky today…"

Andi looked up from her vanity, alarmed as fumbled with her makeup and nail polish collection.

"R-Really?"

"Yep. Like if you had a boyfriend, I'd say you had sex."

"That's preposterous." Whilst neither of those things were true, Ted was not her boyfriend and she hadn't even kissed him yesterday, she was begging her cheeks not to turn red as she looked defiantly at Madeleine's face.

"Whatever, don't think we didn't notice you were late in last night and it looks like you slept with a coat hanger in your mouth you can't stop smiling."

This was true; she hadn't been able to stop since he left her last night.

"I think she's in love…" Persephone's monotone voice murmured as she sat down next to Andi at her vanity and started brushing her black locks as she pouted in the mirror.

"I am not!"

"No need to get so defensive about it."

"I'm not getting defensive!"

"Girls!" Madeleine pushed in-between the two bickering friends, sitting down on her own stool in the middle. "Although, to be fair Andi, it's not like we're asking much. Just if he's a good kisser or not."

"Maddy!"

"That means, he definitely is."

That time, Andi did blush.

"Shut up the pair of you."

"Who is it?"

"He's not my boyfriend."

"So there is someone…"

"Look guys, honestly, there is nothing going on right now, I'm just trying to figure things out."

"Well by that grin you're definitely besotted."

She sighed and glared at her two friends before turning back to her mirror. For the first time she hadn't thought much on the complications of Ted, she had just been enjoying the post first-date haze and the fact that every time she thought of him her heart leapt into her mouth. It was only now as she sat there, seeing the reflection of her friends eye-ing each other up that the seriousness of the situation hit her.

She had done what Severus said, given Ted his chance… and he had shown her just how blooming perfect he was.

Andi jumped up from her table and grabbed her cloak and books for Transfiguration before swooping out of her dorm without another word.

As she climbed the limitless stairs to the common room and then up past the dungeons, then up another flight to Transfiguration, something niggled in her mind. _You're still smiling._ She clutched her books to her chest and giggled slightly as she remembered clutching his foot-ball or whatever it was really called last night. She hated to admit how sentimental she was over little things like that. She had a box underneath her bed that was full of similar objects; eggshells from her first breakfast at Hogwarts, wrappers from Honeydukes on her first trip out to Hogsmeade, her lucky pair of Quidditch socks that she had grown out of, tickets to Quidditch matches or A Bludger to the Head, (most from Madeleine as her parents disapproved of such frivolity) earrings, lockets, hairpins, other junk and now Ted's football. She had shrunk it down to fit in of course, but it went in there will all her other possessions as if it was meant to belong.

"Get a grip!" She muttered under her breath as she caught herself doodling little hearts on her parchment. She threw down the quill and rubbed her thinking spot before sighing. _It's like you're a 14 year old girl with a crush._

_A crush. Oh Merlin, you have a bloody crush…_ She then rested her head on her desk with a groan.

"Something wrong, Miss Black?"

She looked up with a start.

"No, sorry Professor…"

The lesson came to an end twenty minutes later and she gathered all her papers in to her bag, rolling her eyes as she once again noticed the doodles. She slung her bag on her shoulder and walked out of the classroom running her hands through her hair.

"So lover, who is he?"

"I told you he's no one, Mads." She rolled her eyes and Madeleine pulled herself off of the wall and groaned and she followed her friend.

"Please please please please tell me!"

"There's no point, I know you'd go blabbing to Persephone, and she can't keep her mouth shut, and there's nothing going on right now anyways."

"Nothing going on? I swear, you haven't been this happy since the Halloween Bludger to the Head gig."

She tried to suppress her smile, but again she couldn't. "I mean it Maddy, leave it okay?"

"So he's no one?"

"No one."

"Fine." Madeleine groaned again and shook her head. "I'll see you later. Got charms. It's a good thing Tom and Celeste don't do it, because there's this mudblood, getting way too big for his boots. It's taking all we have not to put him back in his place."

"You have charms with… Hufflepuff, am I right?"

"Yeah…" Her eyes narrowed as Andi's widened.

"What's the guy's- I mean mudblood's name?" She tried to sound as bitchy as she could, and whilst she knew delving deeper into this conversation was dangerous territory she had to be sure.

"Ted something or other. Filthy muggle name. Why do you ask?"

Thank Merlin she was a Slytherin and had a lot of practise at lying, and occlumency for that matter (at the age of fifteen, she had to stop Bella from parading around her memories and thoughts somehow). She contained her slight gasp and fake scoffed before frowning.

"That's just one of the Hufflepuff twats that Tom got into a fight with in Creatures last week."

"Oh, urgh, people like that just make my blood boil. I hope he gets what he deserves."

"Yeah."

"See you, love.

"Yep." Andi smiled and Maddy grinned back before turning down the right corridor and heading then left up a few stairs.

Andi waited a good thirty seconds before moving, making sure Maddy had begun to ascend the stairs. She let out a huge sigh of relief, taking a few steps back and leaning back against the cool stone wall, her eyes naturally falling shut.

"So I'm no one and a twat… nice to know you enjoyed yourself last night."

She stood up and opened her eyes with a start, nearly tripping over her own feet. She immediately went to apologize or at least explain, but she looked at him, leaning against the wall himself, a huge grin on his face and a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"Happiest you've been since A Bludger to the Head gig… I'll definitely take that as a compliment."

She blushed and pouted before shaking her head and turning away.

"Don't you have my friends to annoy in Charms?"

"Yeah, but they can wait."

She found herself biting her lower lip and fiddling with her tie as she looked up through her lashes at him. Ted's smile wasn't fading either.

There was a silence as their eyes continued to stare into each other's and he took a few cautious steps towards her.

"I think the question I have for you, gorgeous, is…"

"Is?" She blushed again at his compliment. She would haven normally told him to shut up at this point, but something inside her was begging him to finish his sentence.

"Will there be another night like yesterday?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I think there will be…" She said it before realising what had spilled over her lips.

He grinned and leant forward, his hands still in his pockets as he pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. Her eyes automatically fluttered shut and as he pulled away she found that she was holding her breath in anticipation.

"I've got some Slytherins to piss off in class."

"U-Uh huh…" She was still caught up in his eyes and felt herself stammering. She shook her head and coughed, crossing her arms across her chest. "Can't wait for the stories at lunch."

"I'll make sure they're good then."

He moved away from her to pick up his bag that he had dumped against the wall, before heading down the corridor Maddy had left through earlier. Andi stared after him, smiling when he turned back to look at her.

"See ya."

"Yeah, see you."

After he had completely gone, she turned and laughed to herself, covering her face with her hands. This felt too good to be true.

* * *

"So he said to me 'Persephone, if I'm to be with you, I need to be with all of you'."

"And what did you say?"

Persephone barely battered an eyelid as her flat voice continued to drone through the dorm.

"I told him that I could do so much better."

"Wow."

"That's brave of you Seph." Celeste pointed out as she flopped down onto her bed.

"Do you honestly imagine me spending the rest of my life with him?"

"Well, I suppose, but in the end you're okay, you'll get set up with some rich stud once you leave here if you don't have someone. Some of us have to find our own."

"And Andi's taking the free ones when it's inevitable that her parents are going to set her up anyway."

"What?!" She was snapped out of a daydream, which embarrassingly involved Ted and the beach and things she wouldn't ever admit out loud, and she sat up a frown on her brow.

"Well you won't tell us who lover boy is, and it's like, your parents are going to arrange a marriage when you turn eighteen."

"Where's all this arranged marriage talk coming from?"

Maddy sat back against her pillows. "We all know, that out of the four of us, you and Persephone are going to get set up if you're not already involved by your next birthday."

"That's rubbish!"

"No it's not, and you know as well as I do that Crabbe and Lestrange are putting in bids with your parents for Bellatrix when she turns 18 in Feb."

"And Malfoy probably would be too if he wasn't so into your Narcissa. It doesn't matter how old she is, if he's eighteen and wants her, they should get married as soon as possible. Your family should consider it an honour, every respectable family wanted him as a son-in-law. I know my Father did." Said Celeste as she waved her wand, the cucumber on the side chopping itself before two of the slices flew onto her shut eyelids.

"You guys don't know what you're talking about."

"They do alright." Everyone suddenly turned to face Persephone who was again sat at her vanity brushing her hair. She was even more unreadable than Narcissa. "You and I both know Andromeda, we will either be paired up with the guy of our dreams, rich, handsome, powerful… or it will be some balding fat man in his forties."

Madeleine snorted and Andi glared.

"Well, that's not going to happen."

"Oh, because of your new boyfriend?"

"He is not my boyfriend."

"Well you should hope he becomes it soon, because we aren't all as lucky as Bellatrix who has many the man fawning over her. We might just have to take who we get."

Andi scoffed and lay back on her bed snuggling back into her pillows.

They were right in a sense, she had been reminded by her nanny on many occasions about how likely it was that she would have her marriage arranged and therefore her image had to remain respectable, and how she had to keep her knickers up in order to do so. It may be the Sexy Seventies, but the men of her class (whilst they were allowed to whore about as much as they liked) wanted their young ladies pure on their wedding night.

The girls continued to talk, boys, homework, bitches, the normal topics of conversation for a Wednesday night. Andi however remained silent, after about fifteen minutes she pulled the green curtains around her bed with a deep sigh.

She always slept on her left side, that arm under her head, her right hand holding the quilt to her. She attempted to close her eyes many times, but she felt down all of a sudden. It was as if the haze of happiness had just left and she was left feeling empty. She had been lucky enough to never experience what it was like to be around a Dementor, but she imagined it felt something similar. Ted was no longer a happy thought, but a sad one.

Who was she kidding? They couldn't be together, he would always have to be her secret, she could never present him to her parents. Therefore he would be replaced, with like Persephone said, some devilishly handsome man or an old coot, she imagined neither of which would love her or be a faithful husband.

But she was hurt by this thought. Surprisingly hurt, something she hadn't necessarily felt when she had been disregarding Ted as a potential boyfriend in the last week or so. She had actually been looking forward to the second date, if it was ever going to happen.

Not able to get comfortable she turned over onto her right, but then knowing she would never get to sleep like this, turned back to her left, lying slightly more on her front than before.

"Do you think she's asleep?" She heard Celeste whisper.

"Andi?" That was Maddy asking. "You awake sweetie?"

She kept quiet, curious to see why they wondered.

"She asleep." Persephone droned.

"Who's her fancy man then do you wonder?"

"I honestly have no idea… I thought this morning it might have been Tom, but he's looking even moodier than usual. So I then thought about Darius but I can't ever imagine Andi liking him so... I just don't know."

"Maybe… Urgh I don't know either."

"Well, it's good to see her happy."

"Yeah, suppose… It just feel's…"

"What?"

"There's just something weird about it all."

"She's not stupid girls." Persephone stated, and there was a creek of a bed and Andi assumed Seph had finished her cleansing spell ritual and finally climbed into her bed.

"What does having a secret bloke have to do with being stupid?"

"Like you said, no offense, but like myself, she has to be careful with her choices. She has a brain. She's not going to let her heart rule her head, she knows what's acceptable for our future. She knows how to be respectable."


	9. Backstories

"Honestly Andromeda, I can't keep up with you and your mood swings." Bellatrix rolled her eyes as she reclined against the green leather in the common room.

Andi rolled her eyes before sitting at her sister's feet and smiling slightly back at her.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Come off it, you have been acting so down and suspicious this last week, then you're the happiest person alive yesterday, and today you're back to keeping yourself to yourself."

Bellatrix was right, she had felt a huge pit in the bottom of her stomach as she had awoken from a dream which she didn't wish to remember. It had completely dampened the mood and her whole dorm had sensed it as she sullenly sat at her mirror, painting her nails red and applying the invisible façade of pride and pomp that her family wore so well. "And you've been thinking far too much darling, your nose is wrinkling like an old lady's, do you ever expect to find a good husband?"

"Do you?"

"Well yes, I trust Mother and Father's opinion." She looked dead pan at her sister momentarily before throwing her head back with a cackle. After they both laughed momentarily, Bellatrix took Andi's hand, stroking her sister's fingers with her own. "Oh I'm awfully dreading it, if it ends up being one of father's bachelor friends I may just die!"

"I don't think it will be that bad..."

"At least I know Rodolphus is interested, I think I could live with him."

"What and not the Dark Lord?" Andi winked and giggled but Bella pouted and looked down at her lap.

"Don't be so naïve, as if that would ever happen."

Andi's eyes softened as she saw the one slither of weakness her older sister had. She had adored the Dark Lord since she was a little girl, for (not that the Dark Lord would ever call him so) her father Cygnus and Tom Riddle (as he was apparently formerly known) had even been friends during their Hogwarts days. He would come over and hold meetings in "The Lord's Room" as her Nanny called it. A young Bellatrix would dress in her Sunday best as she greeted him with a curtsy at the front door, her Lord and Master towering over her, twisting a curl of her hair around his unnaturally long fingers as she told him of the new curse she had learnt. She hated to admit she understood the attraction, he was angel like when Andi crossed him in the hall for the first time, and even now he didn't look a day over 25 (despite the fact that in the new year of '73 he would have been celebrating his 45th birthday according to Andi's calculations) his pale almost waxy, skin stretched tight across his cheek bones. He had become less handsome over the years; she had noticed the change in his eyes as the white became bloodshot and as his irises became the same red as her nails, his skin becoming even paler than death and, whether it was just her nightmares corrupting her vision, his general appearance becoming more and more snake like.

She watched Bellatrix as she stared into blank space, her eyes misty as she ran her fingertips over the fabric on her left forearm. She had been branded with his mark upon her sixteenth birthday- she had demanded it to be so. She was so brave that night, initiations were oft held in her house, and the screams that emitted from the room echoes throughout the house, but her sister wouldn't let a cry from her lips or a tear from her eye and she stood proudly afterwards, thanking her master for the honour. She was the first and remained to this day the only female to join the Death Eaters; she was the Dark Lord's little princess.

"Bella…"

She snapped out of her daze and pouted, shaking her head slightly.

"Affection is vastly overrated." She lay back against the cushions, her face framed by her raven hair, her eyes dark and her lips as red as her bra, her shirt seductively undone just far enough that it was visible.

"I don't think so."

Bellatrix scoffed and closed her eyes as she shook her head again. "Ickle Dromeda, still with her head in the clouds."

"Don't call me Dromeda." She noticed how she had immediately corrected Bella, and yet when Ted called her it, nothing seemed more natural. She shook her head as Bella chuckled. "You shouldn't lose hope in lov-" Bella's eyes widened maliciously and Andi caught herself, "I mean don't lose hope in affection, I believe Cissa and Malfoy would have an affectionate marriage."

"What?!" She snapped. "What are you talking about marriage?"

"I'm just saying—Okay, I have to ask, why do you have such a thing against Lucius all of a sudden? You've been friends with him as long as I can remember; he spends half of his summer in our pool, when we're not in his I mean. I thought you'd be happy for them both."

"I just don't like the idea of him defiling our little sister. He does that kind of thing for sport you know."

"Have you seen the way he looks at her?"

"No, I have to look away even when I see them talking, I could cruciatus him in a heartbeat. She's just a little girl overwhelmed by a crush. Could you ever imagine either of us doing such a stupid thing? Following your heart, pah! Father would have a fit."

Andi frowned and slouched back into the sofa as Bella moved her legs to lie across her sister's lap.

"Andi!" She looked up to see a very cheeky looking Madeleine sauntering over to them.

"Yeah?"

"I've got something that's going to cheer you up! Look what I found in the post!" She waved a letter as she continued to move over to them.

Andi's heartbeat quickened as her eyes widened. "Give me that!" She jumped up and turned to lean over the back of the sofa reaching for the parchment envelope but Maddy held it just out of reach.

"It's very clean, not been to the owlery, must have been put in the box by hand." She smiled and rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet.

"I feel like I am missing something intriguing, please, do share." Bellatrix half sat up, a cocked eyebrow at her sister.

"It's nothing, from no-one I guess."Andi finally managed to snatch the letter off Maddy and held it out of her friends reach as she tried to retrieve it.

"Well, Mr No-one is certainly into you if he's sending you letters and delivering them himself."

"Mr No-one huh?" Bellatrix was back to her usual self as she grinned her dark smile, the one that always gave her eye a twinkle. A twinkle that always made Andi go cold inside, for it was the twinkle that Andi had first witnessed when Bellatrix, as a child, was levitating a squealing half-mauled mouse above their cat's open mouth. (It was moments like this when she thought of how good Bella and the Dark Lord _would_ be together. Well, not good, because they were both cruel, but the principle was there.)

As Andi's stare returned to and became preoccupied with Maddy, Bellatrix suddenly snatched the letter from her sister's hand and stood, ripping open the envelope and her black eyes, still sparkling, pouring over the words that were written there.

The panic surging through Andi's entire being was excruciating, rooting her to the spot with pure fear.

Bellatrix read aloud, her tone harsh and sarcastic as she did so.

"_Hey beautiful, thought we'd make the second date official_."

Andi dived for her sister, her eyes wide and scared. She could give all the contextual stories about her sisters, her family, the Dark Lord, but _no_ amount of storytelling would soften the blow that when told Ted's background, underneath all the layers, he was a simple muggle-born. She lunged again demanding it back, but Bellatrix whipped out her wand and held it in Andi's face as she continued to read sauntering around infront of the fire as if she owned the place. Andi felt like the mouse, her body in pieces, her head screaming as she was dangled in front of the jaws of death, as her sister laughed and played her favourite game.

"_Sorry I haven't been able to catch up with you today and I know I'll see you in class tomorrow, but in case we can't chat, fancy another match tomorrow night? Same place as last time, but same time as dinner? Yours, T xx_"

A wave of relief hit her causing her knees to buckle and she flopped down onto the sofa. He had just signed it T and not been specific about anything. She smiled slightly, she ought to give him credit for he was smarter than she thought. And a second date? Despite the rut that she had been all day, she couldn't help but grin and blush at the concept and she felt butterflies fill her stomach at the thought of them spending more time together, alone.

It was odd when she thought of the time they spent alone together, it was like he existed out of space and time, as she thought before sleep last night, he couldn't be part of her world, so it was like he was in his own, his own world where they could just be themselves and play muggle games in the snow and get away from... well, everything. It was only when Bellatrix clicked her fingers in-front of her face she realized that her sister had been talking the whole time whilst Maddy was biting her lip hard to stop herself from laughing.

"Andi, are you going to completely ignore me? Who is this T?"

"Huh?"

"Oh for crying out loud, _who is he_?"

"That's… none of your business, Bellatrix." With a smile she took the letter from her and after quickly folding it up, stuffed it into her bra before grabbing her bag and heading towards the dorms.

"Andi!"

"If you're that interested, make a guess Bella. Have fun with it, the girls spent all day yesterday trying to riddle it out. Maybe just accept that he's no-one."

* * *

"Okay, so he said match, that's obvious."

"Quidditch."

"Yep, so I'm guessing they'll be going to the Quidditch pitch…"

"Maybe, but then, why say "same place" and not "the pitch". Maybe… the training ground?"

"True… very true…"

Bellatrix and Narcissa lounged on the sofa late that evening, Bella with a large glass of red wine in her hand as she frowned, trying to work out who Andi's beau was.

"Perhaps we should just giver her space, Bella. If it's only their second date…"

"Space? Space?!"

"Yes, space. I know I'd appreciate it a little."

Bellatrix scowled and downed the rest of her wine. "She's keeping something from us. I know it. And I will find it out, I won't have anything disgrace the family name."

"Who said she would be disgracing it?"

"Evening ladies…"

"Piss off, Malfoy."

Lucius smirked at Bellatrix as she looked away from him. He leant on the back of the sofa, running a hand down to settle on Narcissa's shoulder, before he grazed her neck with the back of his fingers. Bellatrix's eyes darkened as she scowled at Cissa's blush.

"Get your perverted hands off of my little sister."

Lucius stood up cocking his head back, crossing his arms across his chest, his smirk still present. He had obviously just come back from Quidditch practice as the ends of his shoulder length hair still looked damp and he was that squeaky clean that you only are straight after a shower.

"How was practice?"

"Your sister seems distracted." He answered Narcissa, his smirk softening slightly.

"What?"

With that air of frustration that Narcissa thought became him so well, he turned back to Bellatrix.

"Distracted, yes. She nearly got hit by bludgers, twice. And anyway my dear Bella, is there a chance I could have some private time with Narcissa here, you know, without Rodolphus interrupting…?"

Bellatrix stood as she snarled at him. "What are you insinuating?"

"Don't pretend Bellatrix, he follows you around like a bloody puppy. You would have only had to say one word and, either way, he's been stalking me whenever I'm near Cissa-"

"I don't know what you are talking about, come on Cissy."

"But I-"

And with that Bellatrix dragged her sister across the common room and down the stairs to the dormitories, Narcissa giving a fleeting glance at Lucius as he winked and laughed at her poor fortune. For the moment, Andi's deviations and secrets had been completely forgotten.


	10. Something Special

"I got your note…"

Ted squealed and spun a hundred and eighty degrees to face Andi, tripping over his feet as he did so.

"Blimey! Don't sneak up on me like that! Don't you remember, I hate it!" He laughed as he rubbed his chest, just over his heart.

"Sorry… But that _was_ a blast from the past, I would have thought you would have grown out of screaming like a girl." She bit her lip and smiled up at him as they continued to walk down to the Creatures clearing.

"You used to say it was endearing." He smirked at her and she giggled.

"Sure."

"You really did!"

She laughed again and after smiling he lowered his voice to a nearly inaudible level.

"You okay for tonight then?"

"Yeah, I'm…" She sighed, "I'm actually really looking forward to it."

"Me too. I've been thinking about it, and you, a lot you know…"

"I guess I have too…" She looked at him momentarily before coughing and shaking her head, refusing to let herself get lost in his sapphire eyes.

"I just want to clarify something…"

"Mm-hmm?"

"Just where you stood re dates and kissing."

"Ahh." She dared to glance up at him and she felt blood surge to her cheeks as he grinned, an eyebrow half raised as he bit the tip of his tongue with his right canines. Most men would look sleazy pulling such a face, yet something about it became him, and she just pouted back playing along. "Well, first date was a definite no, second date, probably no, third date definitely yes… with tongues."

Ted tried to contain his laugh, but she could see how she was getting exactly the reaction that she desired. In an attempt to recover himself, he ran a hand through his hair and grinned again.

"So, would you count this as the second date?"

"Walking down to Creatures?" Andi raised her eyebrows in discontent before smirking. "I suppose more like a half date really."

"And, what would be the appropriate intimacy level for such an occasion, might I ask?"

"Well…" She tried not to smile as she shook her head. She lowered her left hand from her bag strap and brushed the back of her gloved fingers against his, in her head it was some kind of secret attempt to hold his hand, which her palpitating heart desperately wanted to do.

"Ahh." He looked down at her hand and saw her hand-holding attempt. He half smiled and let his fingers gently graze hers back.

She coughed and smiled cheekily at him. "Well done with your note by the way, Bellatrix got it…"

He laughed as he tugged at his yellow and black scarf, wrapping it tighter around his neck. He looked down into the clearing and saw two of Andi's fellow Slytherins. That Wilkes tosser stubbed out his cigarette on the fence and as he turned, he noticed Andi at least. He half smiled and went to wave at her, but then looked suspicious (obviously noting Ted next to her) and turned to the dark skinned male next to him.

"Right, to keep up appearances, call me a mudblood and feel free to hex me once or twice."

"Ted… I'm not doing that. I…" She smiled just enough that he noticed.

"You?"

"I couldn't do it…"

"But… They're looking you know."

Andi immediately whipped out her wand and bound his legs together. She did momentarily feel bad, but her laugh was genuine as he squealed again falling on his face into the snow. She scowled as much as she could as she stormed down to her friends.

"Bloody mudblood." She muttered 'under her breath' before she leant on the fence next to Tom.

"I'm looking for an excuse to kill him, just say the word, Black."

She chuckled, "Maybe one day Tom, one day."

"Going down the pub tonight, fancy joining me?"

"Sorry Tom, I would but… I've got plans already."

"Oh, cool."

"Yeah, girls night in, distracting Persephone from her break up."

"Sounds fun."

Ted winked from over the way, brushing himself down and shaking the snow out of his hair as some other Gryffindor had undone his leg-binding curse.

"Yeah, you could say that."

* * *

She walked through the snow, glad it was so thick as she left the castle for no-one could have possibly followed her. Andi was halfway down the lane as it began to thin and turned to a gentle dusting on her eyelashes. It was such a romantic night, the sky a dark and mysterious blend of black and navy blue, golden stars shining through the clouds dashing light upon the white blanket beneath her feet. She pulled her green and silver scarf tighter around her neck as she sighed, the cold air whipping against her cheeks.

_Your hair is a mess. _

It was true, the wind even though had died down for a moment, that moment allowed her to notice how windswept and tangled it was. She tried to run her fingers through it and as they got stuck she sighed again. _So much for trying to impress him._ She had worn one of her favourite dresses, a deep red, knee-length velvet dress that flared at her waist and was supported by her Ra-Ra underskirt. She always got told she looked like Mrs Claus when she wore it (for she normally paired it with her artic- fox fur cape, brown dragon skin gloves and black ankle boots) so tonight, not wanting to look so comical, she had just slipped on some red court shoes and her normal coat.

She had kind of thought about what to wear for their first date but not in any way near as much detail as tonight. Hiding from her friends, she had done her best to sneak out of the common room half an hour before she needed to, and had trailed around the castle in an attempt to shake any stalkers off. Andi had considered not dressing up at all, in case he was being serious and did just want to play his muggle game again.

She turned slightly back on herself down the other fork in the road, taking one last deep breath looking over her shoulder to check she was alone.

Keeping on, she had to double take when she got to the clearing, as by some trees in the far corner, it looked like a den had been formed as blankets and fur rugs hung from the branches. It also looked like the snow had gone a creamy, gold, but it turned out to be another fur rug, on top of which were some pots, some cutlery, some piles of other blankets and pillows. She almost frowned as she approached the quaint and cosy area, for the reason she had come was missing, but she smiled as she noticed Ted's bum sticking out from behind one of the hanging rugs as he was bent over, lighting some floating candles.

"Hi."

His head shot out from behind and she smiled as he stuttered slightly.

"Hi."

They stood there for a moment, their eyes locked on each other's, as she fiddled with her coat buttons.

He was dressed up for the weather much more than she was, he had a thick woollen jumper on, and his scarf was still around his neck.

Andi strolled over to him biting her lower lip. She had no idea what to say and he seemed at a loss for words too.

"I, err…"

"Yes?"

"I thought I'd bring some dinner. Is stew okay?" He gestured to the pots on the rug.

"Yes, lovely."

"Excellent, great! I," he stumbled over his words. "I remember from first year, you always said you liked it."

"I can't believe half the things you remember Ted…"

"They've been all I can think about recently…"

She blushed as he gestured for her to sit and she did so. She went to pull off her coat, but as the cold air hit her she immediately changed her mind.

"Sorry, are you cold?"

"I'm fine, honestly."

"Nah, just wait a second." He jumped up and ran off behind one of the hanging furs bringing back an armful of wood. He placed them at the foot of the blanket and whispered incendio before they burst into flames radiating more than enough heat for them to be comfortably warm without coats. She knelt up to remove her coat and his jaw dropped slightly as she did so. "Dromeda… you are just… wow."

She blushed, pulling her hair from her face and pulling it to drape over one shoulder.

"I'm sorry if I dressed up too much…"

"No, don't be silly, you look incredible."

There was a little silence as they both looked at one another before Ted coughed, lifting the lid off of the pot of stew.

"Smells amazing."

They laughed as they ate, exchanging stories about their lessons, Andi's Quidditch practice, the standard Hogwarts gossip. After a while they just sat in silence, a silence which wasn't odd or awkward, and moments later he leant over and took her hand, and she held it back smiling at him. They just ate their full until Ted mopped up the spare gravy with some bread he pulled out of another basket.

When she had finished, he then went back into the hamper and pulled out some steaming apple pie, topped with fresh whipped cream.

She chuckled and smiled up at him.

"Pudding after our first lesson together…"

"Yep."

"You, Ted Tonks, are something special."

She dug her spoon into the pie and ate it hungrily not caring that her dress felt tight enough as it was, Ted looking at her through affectionate eyes. When Andi had finished, he reached over and cleared away all of the food, putting it back in the hamper.

"So… what do you want to do now?"

"I don't know… you seem to have had everything planned so far…" She smiled at him.

"I'm pretty much all out of ideas." He got out a pack of playing cards. She frowned as he shuffled them and then he held them out. "If I get this right, then I pick what we do, if I get it wrong, you can. Deal?"

"Ted I don't get it."

"Pick a card, any card." He grinned and she laughed. "It's what muggles practice as magic."

"Okay…"

She did so, holding it out of his view.

"Now remember that card okay?"

"Yep." She was still laughing, trying to work out what on earth he was doing.

"Okay, put it back in the pile, don't let me see it."

She did so. He shuffled the cards twice, then split the deck in two, then shuffled again before laying them out on the blanket. He random cut the deck again, pulling and one card had flipped within the pack.

"Take a look."

She pulled the odd card up and gasped.

"I'm going to say, Queen of hearts."

"How did you…? How?"

"Magic."

"That isn't magic… I mean, that's…"

"Magic."

"You are just…"

"Something special?"

She sat there in complete awe for a moment, laughing as she looked up at his smile. The air was warmer thanks to the fire, and the blankets were acting as insulation, but she could still see his breath on the crisp air.

"So… you win, w-what do you want to do?" She bit her lip and blushed, she couldn't help but feel the heat within her body rise as she looked at him.

"Well, it kind of depends on what you consider this to be."

"This?"

"Itemising our hand holding and walk down to creatures, I believe tonight constitutes a third date." The glimmer in his eyes told her where this conversation was going. "And if you agree and this _is_ our third date, then I do believe you owe me the sum of, one kiss, with tongues."

"I see…"

Andi held in her laughter, just biting slightly on her lower lip as she leant forward and placed a hand on his thigh, slowly leaning into his face.

"And, if I was to agree that this is our third date, when would you like the account to be settled…"

"Right now."

"This minute?"

"This second."

Ted leant forward and kissed Andi's lips gently. When he pulled away her eyes opened to see him staring back at her. His eyes were still full of life and his never fading sparkle, but for once he wasn't laughing or smiling; he was being deadly serious.

"I..."

"You?"

"I still owe you tongues..."

Upon leaning in again she pressed her palms to his cheeks, and she finally noticed how cold her hands were against his warm skin. When she opened her mouth for his admittance, she whimpered as his tongue found hers and moved her hands to run through his hair.

She lay back upon some cushions with a soft thump and he lay above her, his hands either side of her head. After a few moments, he pulled away.

"Andi, what would you have done if I hadn't had got your card?"

She pulled him back down towards her, and he lowered himself even more as the kiss deepened. Like his second in the hospital wing it was a tender kiss, his hands tangled in her hair as she nibbled on his lower lip. She had never done that before, with anyone, and yet she felt the urge and it seemed to come naturally. As they took advantage of every little pull away for air, she realized this was the longest kiss she had had with anyone either.

She fleetingly wondered if this is what everyone felt during kisses. She felt reckless and bold and _adored_. And when Ted looked at her, Andi felt beautiful under his lustful gaze, and more special than she ever had before; she was no longer the ignored, average at everything, middle sister; she was the most important girl in the world.

"Ted…"

She moaned as he pulled away to nip at her neck, her hands running through his hair. He continued to kiss her skin softly, sending shivers right down her spine.

"Thank you for tonight."

He pulled away. "You're so very welcome."

"I mean it, I really have fun when I'm with you, and… I just can't stop thinking about you and Ted I've come to think…"

He placed a finger on her lips, and she momentarily thought he was going to kiss her again but then she noticed that he was actually frowning looking up and away from her.

"Ted-"

"Ssh…"

"What is it?"

Then she heard it too; a faint whistle in the background. They both sat up and Andi turned cold inside, shuffling back away from Ted.

"Shit."

"It could be no one…" He looked so naïve as he shrugged, raising his eyebrows. But her face was quite the opposite, full of panic like a child found with their hand in the cookie jar.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

"Andi…"

With an exasperated sigh, he buried his head in his hands as Andi jumped up and ran to hide behind one of the blankets; the whistling was growing louder. A young, dark haired man emerged through the puff of smoke from the end of his cigarette. Ted momentarily thought the guy would just walk on but he seemed to sense another person's presence and he turned to see Ted, still sat on the rug, a defensive frown on his brow – this was not how the evening was meant to go.

As the man approached further, Ted couldn't help but recoil.

"Who is it?!" Andi whispered through the fur.

"Wilkes…"


	11. The Right Thing

"T-Tom?"

"Yep."

"Oh shit, he said he was going to the Three Broomsticks! Fuck!"

Andi stood behind the blanket shaking like a leaf (and not just from the ice cold air that was now surrounding her), her head in her hands. If she ran now, she might get away with it, but she couldn't tell how close he was, if he was even approaching this direction. She just made the decision to flee the scene when his deep voice the other side of the blanket made her jump, rooting her legs to the spot.

"Well well well, what do we have here?"

"The castle is down the other lane."

"Oh is it?" He laughed darkly, and he staggered as he walked obviously having a few too many at the pub. "Finally managed to attract a girl, Tonks? Yes, I know your name, I've been doing some research on you, after you dared come near me and Andromeda in the Creatures clearing."

"I hope you've had fun reading up on me then."

"What is she attracted to, eh? This girl of yours… Your trollish looks or your filthy blood?"

"Piss off."

"So, who is it then? Some other mudblo-" his sentence trailed off, and his eyes widened as he looked at, what Ted thought at first was the rug. "This…" he dived forward and grabbed Andi's coat from the floor and he then grabbed the front of Ted's jumper, yanking him to face him. "This is Andromeda's coat, where is she you fucking filthy mudblood-"

"I don't what you're on about, Wilkes. I think you're drunk"

"Where is she?! I'll kill you, I'll kill you right now, I swear to Merl-"

"G-Get off him, Tom."

Andi stepped out between the rugs, her right hand shaking, her knuckles white as she gripped her wand.

"What is this Andi…?" Tom threw Ted aside as he looked up at her through angry, hurt eyes and whether it was her own salty tears blinding her, but she could have sworn his eyes were brimming with them too.

"Tom I—"

"What is it Andi? Come on," he roared as he unsteadily pulled himself to his feet, "COME ON!"

"Stupify!"

Tom went flying backwards and his crashed into a tree, knocking him unconscious. She walked over to him and knelt down to face him, straightening his leather jacket collar.

"I'm sorry Tom…" She pressed the tip of her wand to his forehead. "Obliviate."

Andi couldn't control it, but as she clasped her hands to her mouth, she began to sob uncontrollably. She hated that she was this weak; she wished she could turn it all off like Cissy or Bella, but how could she do that to her friend, to Tom? Next thing she knew Ted was by her side, stroking her shoulder.

"It's okay Dromeda…"

"P-Please Ted. Don't. Don't call me that." She wrenched herself out of his grip and stood, pacing furiously as she thought. "We pack up, we leave, he'll wake up in a couple of hours just think he got too pissed and passed out."

Everything had suddenly become clear, her rose-tinted glasses had broken and shattered into a million heart-breaking pieces and the harsh, cold reality lay in front of her.

_How stupid are you?_ How selfish and improper she was being here, snogging some outsider in the snow. She had hurt one of her own, a boy that, whilst wasn't her best friend, had always been there for her. Her recklessness and boldness wasn't a good thing anymore, and she couldn't stand what she had done.

Ted ran over and held her hands tight, before he pulled her away from Tom's limp body and into an embrace and then down to sit together on the throw. He thumbed away her tears and she shook her head.

"I can't do this Ted. I can't live like this, doing this, and I'm _not_ like my sisters, I can't remove someone's memory without feeling guilty… or jinx them or… I _can't_ do that again next time we're caught-"

"So we won't get caught again-"

"Ted, please… just…"

"Just?"

"Stop… Stop for a minute and just think about what we're doing."

He paused as she looked at him with sad and cold eyes, the familiar warmness in the grey vanishing back to the chilling cruelty that lay in her sister's eyes.

"l may be crazy, but I don't want to lose you again, Andi…"

She wrapped her arms around him and they lay back together, her head on his chest. He was puzzled as they looked up to the stars, confused as to what she was thinking, what she wanted and what this all meant.

"When we get up and go back to the castle, will that be it then?"

"Suppose it will be, Ted."

"So… what if we never leave…?"

* * *

"Andi? Andi are you okay?"

"Y-yeah… I'm, I'm f-fine."

Maddy jumped out of bed and ran over to Andi, hugging her tightly, letting her sob into her shoulder.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, honestly, j-just go back to bed, I'm sorry I was s-so l-loud…"

"Babe…"

Andi pulled herself out of the embrace and after kicking off her shoes ran into the bathroom. She splashed her face with water from the sink, washing away the mascara stains that lay upon her cheeks. She was drained already, her face pale and eyes bloodshot, ghost like as she stared at her reflection in the mirror.

"Andi, come out, what happened with him?"

She splashed her face one last time, grabbing her towel from her shelf and wiping away the water. She opened the door slowly to find Maddy in her dressing gown leaning against the wall and Celeste sat up in bed, dozy and baffled as she looked over at the pair.

"Nothing, it's over now if it was ever really happening."

"Oh love, I'm sorry-"

"There's nothing to be sorry about." Andi didn't even bother brushing the tangled mess that was her hair, she just grabbed a hairband from her vanity and pulled it up into a loose bun. She ignored the fact that this exaggerated her cheek bones, making her face in the mirror look even more ghastly than it did before.

* * *

_"I… I am sorry Ted… for everything, it should have never happened."_

_"I disagree."_

_"You would." She half smiled up at him, their fingers entwined as they walked back to the castle. They snuck in through the green houses and went to go inside just before Ted stopped._

_"I want to give you something."_

_She frowned as he began to tug at his wrist. He pulled a braid of yellow, green and blue thread off his wrist and gestured for her to hold hers out. He placed the braid around her pale skin and tied it up, caressing and kissing her fingers when he finished._

_"Ted, your sister gave you this, I can't have it." It had come up in conversation earlier that evening, as his jumper sleeve had fallen back revealing many the thread and leather bracelet, and she had mocked him for wearing such jewellery._

_"I want you to have it."_

_She smiled, tears spilling from her eyes. "What did you say it was again?"_

_"A friendship bracelet."_

_The most ironic laugh spilled over her lips and she closed her eyes in attempt to hold back the dam bursting._

_"You're my friend."_

_"Mine too." He smiled back stroking her cheek and pulling her closer._

_"Please… don't…"_

_But even she couldn't stop herself as their lips briefly met._

_"Goodbye Andi-"_

_"Call me Dromeda again... before you go."_

_"You're speaking as if we will never see each other again!" He laughed briefly, "This may be over but I'll still keep the habit of pissing off your friends in lessons."_

_She couldn't help but smile a little as she wiped her face. _

_"And I thought you hated it when people call you Dromeda."_

_"People change I guess."_

_"Goodbye then, Dromeda."_

_He kissed her one last time, and she had to stop herself from wrapping her arms around him and never letting go._

_As he walked away, without a backwards glance, she hugged herself in attempt to contain her sobs. She wouldn't let him hear them. She was too proud for that._

You've done the right thing_ muttered the little angel on her left shoulder. But the devil on her right was subdued, an eyebrow raised as it kept silent, for Andi knew how she was really feeling._

You've done the right thing, haven't you?

* * *

_He was so happy._

_Ted stood their smiling, kissing the back of a black haired girl's neck as they looked out towards the lake. Andi watched him from the shadows, as he smiled and laughed at his girlfriend smiling back up at him._

_"You, Ted Tonks, are something special."_

_That's what I said, that's my line!_

_He kissed her with such tenderness and yet Andi's eyes couldn't look away despite their burning._

_"Sweetie! Oh come here you silly man!"_

_Andi jumped as footsteps approached from behind her, which then broke into a skip._

_A little blonde boy ran past her and towards the couple, Ted swooping him into his arms as he rubbed the baby bump of his girlfriend, the wedding rings on their fingers catching the setting sun before the sky faded to black._

_Andi's heart shattered as cold hand gripped her shoulders, wrenching her away from the scene and to an altar of a gothic church, where everyone was in black, except for herself; her white lace gown trailing down the aisle._

_No, you can't! _

_She screamed to herself, searing hot rings pushed onto her fingers before being dragged away by a stranger with glowing red eyes—_

* * *

_"_Andi!"

She sat up with a start her head spinning and chest in agony, her heart-beating so hard she though it would break through her rib-cage.

"For Merlin's sake, you're still not up? Quidditch practice started half an hour ago, Lu is wondering where on earth you are!"

"Go away Cissa, I'm not in the mood."

"You're never in the mood anymore! I'm sorry that you seem to be permanently on your period, but you know you have Quidditch on a Sunday morning and you're one of the best players we have! If you beat Hufflepuff on Wednesday then we're in the final on Friday and no matter whether Gryffindor win or not, we've won the house cup!"

"I just don't care."

"You aren't being serious."

"Yes I bloody am." Andi pulled the bed covers over her head, her hangover starting to kick in as she decided another day in bed followed by another bottle of wine would do just nicely.

"That is it. Andromeda Black!" Narcissa whipped off the covers and Andi squealed as the cold air hit her. "You get out of bed right now, get down to that Quidditch pitch and do the right thing and kick some Badger backside, you got me?"

"_Fine_!"

"Good!"

Andi groaned and threw a pillow at her sister before rolling out of bed and heading for her wardrobe.

There was silence between the two sisters as Andi changed, Narcissa casting a charm to make the bed again, before she perched on the end, her lips pursed and a scowl on her brow.

"Did you really drink that all by yourself?" Narcissa nodded to the empty bottle by her bed.

"What do you care?"

"Andi…" Narcissa stood and went to stroke her sister's shoulder before being pushed away.

"Don't pity me, you don't know anything."

"I'm your sister, and I know ever since you were 14, when you're hit rock bottom you raid the wine cellar."

"Who says I've hit rock bottom?"

"That fact that you haven't brushed your hair in days, you've got 2 day old makeup on, and you're wearing tracksuit bottoms to bed like some tramp; Mummy didn't buy you silk night gowns for nothing you know."

"You're stupid."

"I'm not stupid, and neither is your dorm! What happened on Friday night, you know, with your boyfriend?"

"He is _not_ my boyfriend!"

For the first time since Friday night, she heard how bitter she sounded. Her nightmares hadn't helped, but everything about Ted just hurt her now. And she had ended it, and on such good terms too, and that made it worse for she had no one to be angry at except herself.

"Well whoever he is then, something happened and it's obviously upset you."

"I'm fine."

"Says the…" She saw another empty bottle peeking out from behind her locker, "_two _bottles of wine you've gone through since Friday."

"I'm going to Quidditch to appease your beloved, what _more_ do you want from me, Narcissa?" Andi stared blankly at her sister while Cissa rolled her eyes in despair.

"I'm trying to help and see what's wrong! Forgive me for not going all Bella and just raiding your brain, I thought I'd do the decent thing and ask."

She sat down on the bed again with the daintiest of angry thumps and Andi turned, putting her hairbrush down.

"Sorry."

"Sorry."

Andi finished changing and sat down next to Narcissa tying up her boot laces.

"What's wrong Andi… you haven't been yourself in weeks ."

"I don't even know who I'm meant to be any more, Cissy."

Andi ignored the frown from her sister and stood, heading towards the doorway.

"Andi-"

"Come on then. Don't want to keep pretty boy waiting."

Narcissa couldn't help but smile as she stood and put her hands deep into her coat pockets. "Alright."

"Alright? You're the one that got me out of bed!"

Andi laughed slightly as she begun to ascend the stairs, concentrating far too much on not letting her hangover take hold to even think of Ted. She didn't even notice that she was fiddling with his friendship bracelet as she did so.


	12. The Change in a Game

_**A/N: I just want to apologise for the ridiculous wait for this chapter, life has just been crazy over the last month. I hope you all enjoy this, and know the next few chapters are already half written so expect lots of Christmassy updates! Happy holidays! :)**_

* * *

"Please, please, please, please, please Ted!"

"No! I won't do it!"

"You don't even have to play, you just have to sit on the side-lines, while _we_ play!"

"You could literally ask anyone else in Hufflepuff, I swear even Mar would be more up for this than me!"

"Trust me, you're our last choice-"

"Not helping me come around to this idea…"

Frank looked at Ted with his puppy dog eyes and no matter how much he huffed and puffed, Frank wasn't going to give in. It was a freezing afternoon, the Semi Final between Hufflepuff and Slytherin was about to commence, but that morning one of their best chasers had been put on probation for sliming up the Slytherin broomsticks the previous night.

"Look, Max is playing for Hettie, we just need to have a reserve, otherwise we can't play! We can't bend any more rules after Hettie's stunt, we need 7 players and one reserve! And everyone's rooting for us to win, otherwise Slytherin will win the house cup in July! They're that far ahead!"

"I don't care, okay?!"

"Ted, look…" Frank began to pace frantically, he was already in his golden Quidditch robes, his broom discarded to the side of the changing room. "Please, I know everything went tits up with Black, but that was nearly a week ago and we need you, your house needs you."

"Frank…"

"I'll… I'll do your washing for a month!"

"Frank, I'm not-" Ted broke into hysterical laughter as Frank got down on his knees and held his arms out pleadingly.

"I'll do your essays, I'll give you pudding every night at dinner, I'll do anything, _anything_, please!"

There was a silence as Ted threw his head back with a groan before jumping on the spot slightly. "Okay fine."

"YES! THANK YOU, MERLIN!"

"But, you are doing my essays and I want your pudding every dinner."

"Fine, it's all fine!"

"And, you have to do whatever I say for the next week at least okay?"

"Yeah, okay, just put these on!" Frank chucked a golden Quidditch uniform at Ted and he sighed as he stripped from his jumper and jeans.

"I don't even have a broom!"

"You don't need one! I told you, you don't even have to play!"

"Frank! Has he said yes already?! The match starts in five!" a voice called from outside.

"Yeah, we're just coming!"

"I hate you."

"Well, I love you, now come on!" Frank began dragging Ted towards the door even as he was pulling on his last shin pad.

* * *

Lucius just finished his 10 minute long motivational speech when Andi finally snapped back into consciousness as a hand met her back.

"You've got this, Andi."

"Thanks, Craggy." She tied her hair into a high ponytail and stood, before pacing back and forth, back and forth, back and forth all the while picking off her dark green nail polish. Even she would not wear Gryffindor's colour on her nails during a match, just in case it brought bad luck, and she could not deal with any more upset.

The only girl on the team, the other six boys were surprisingly acute to Andi's mood swings, and every single member had picked up on her sombre mood and were concerned. Not necessarily for her wellbeing- no, they were boys purely driven to win whatever game they played after all- but they definitely were all concerned for her because, whilst they hated to admit it, she was their best player after Lucius.

"What is up with her?"

"No idea." Lucius muttered hesitantly. All the boys, (minus Hughsworth who was doing his routine press ups) were huddled in the corner, watching on as Andi milled about. "Not even Cissa-"

All the boys groaned before pouting lips and battering eyelashes at their captain.

"Fuck off." Lucius snapped. Andi hadn't even looked up.

"We're fucked."

"No, we're not." Lucius stated, his arms loosely folded over his muscly chest. "It's a bloody good thing that Hufflepuff bitch tried to screw us over, 'cause without her, this will the easiest match of the term."

"Not without our top Chaser…"

Lucius glared, "I mean, except you boss."

"Gorgovitch, just stick to the plan, take out the seeker. Hughsworth!"

The broadly build man stood, he was an obvious choice for a beater, and sauntered over to the huddle. "Yes, boss?"

"You, take out their keeper. I'm relying on you two. Without their keeper and seeker, we have this in the bag."

The whistle blew from outside and the team all grabbed their broomsticks (freshly polished and pruned after the trick slime had been removed) and emerged from their tent to the roar of the crowd.

* * *

"Get your head in the game." Lucius muttered as they mounted their broomsticks, it was standard routine for him to say so, and for once she was glad of it, she needed the reminder that this was a game and not practise where her mind could wander...

She couldn't pick Ted out from the crowd of Hufflepuff in the stalls. (Noted they were all very far away, but she had a knack for picking people out and had already found Cissy and Bellatrix among the sea of green.) She would have expected Ted to be there, he was not one for playing the game but it surprised her that he wasn't there to support his friends, and… to boo her.

There was that tense moments silence as they kicked off the ground to hover mid-air, Andi's eyes focusing in on the quaffle that currently rested in the hands of the referee, Madam Hooch. A woman around her sixties, maybe even seventies (her age was as much of a speculation as Dumbledore's whom was reckoned to be at least ninety by now) Madam Hooch still had a surprisingly sharp eye for foul play and would pick up on any Slytherin funny business. She always seemed to eye Andi and Lucius up before a game as if to say _"I've got an eye on you both."_

That never phased Andi though, starting a match was second nature. She felt her senses become heightened as they seemed to click into another mode; her eyes would pick up anything from a the slight lip-quiver or beads of sweat rolling down someone's brow. She observed how Lucius' lips slowly began to curl into his infamous smirk as he eyed up the competition, they looked scared, unprepared, tense. Their breath was hot and steamy on the cold winter's air, her own remaining slow and steady compared to some of the players, who were beginning to pant. Their fingertips were gripping tight on their broomsticks, except for hers- loose as always and ready to grab that quaffle-

They were off, her fingers pulling the quaffle into reach, tucking the ball safely into her chest as she darted towards the hoops on the far side of the court.

She threw and scored within seconds their keeper baffled and angry already, the commentator announcing her goal and more boo's and hisses meeting her ears than the cheers of her house.

"They're faster than usual!" She heard one of the Hufflepuff chasers frustrately cry.

"We're not ready for this! Specially without Hettie!" cried another.

She could see Lucius' sneer from where she was hovering and she knew they had this.

The game was truly underway, about twenty or so minutes in Slytherin were still holding their own, the possession of the quaffle was (90% of the time) theirs, 70 points up- 40 scored by Andi, 30 by Lucius and both teams didn't think anything could stop them.

Lucius whistled and the team all smiled, knowing it was time to make their move. Andi allowed herself to be boxed in by her competitors as they attempted to wrestle the quaffle off her, the commentator making a snide remark causing the keeper to become distracted, watching to see if they would gain possession, and sure enough they did as Andi let the ball go at the very moment Hughsworth had lined up his shot.

As the crowd roared at the potential of Hufflepuff's first goal, Hughsworth sent a bludger hurtling towards the brown haired, sticky out eared, keeper.

Not seeing till too late, Frank Longbottom's swerve was in vain as he was clipped on the chest and knocked off his broom, falling his way down into the sand below. Of course the ground of the arena was enchanted to slow the falls of players as they got close, for often that was what did the most damage.

The crowd gasped and screamed as Frank fell, a distinct cry from a Gryffindor girl in the stand nearby was particularly noticeable to the players on that end of the pitch.

Andi herself couldn't even hold her smirk back. Rarely was a game this easy, rarely was it such a clean sprint towards the finishing line, there was always something that changed, made a player react differently, made the ball fly differently, be it wind or a change of heart for the former example. But she was having none of that; she felt like herself again in this game, Craggy winking from across the way. For the first time in a while, Andi felt like the tactical, smart and powerful Andromeda Black that had the reputation as a winner. This was the reputation she had gradually felt slipping away over the last week or so and she decreed it no more. This was who she was, this was who she was meant to be. A winner.

But then, completely out of the blue, the change came.

The change that always came to throw her off balance. A voice that was so familiar even at such a distance. The whisper of her name even seemed to echo in the cries of his friend's name.

For he wasn't calling her name, no he wasn't, "Frank!" he cried, "Frank!".

That dirty-blonde haired boy that she felt free of for just one moment had thrust himself upon her again. Andi felt sick; winded at the sight of him running full pelt across the pitch towards the falling body of his best friend.

Note that this (whilst it may seem unlikely) had all happened in less than a minute, Hooch blew her whistle, causing all players to stop mid-air, but that didn't stop the smiles on the Slytherin faces, nor the cheers from their home supporters.

There was a sigh of relief from three quarters of the crowd as Frank stood, obviously woozy but seemingly okay. Andi heard Lucius swear loudly and the Slytherin team re-group of their side of the pitch, but Andi seemed fixated in mid-air. Ted wrapped his arms around his friend, laughing at him, saying something that Andi couldn't make out. She could make out Madam Hooch however, who, after checking Frank was okay, mounted her broom and darted off with a stern look towards the Slytherin huddle.

She couldn't quite fathom what happened next, there was a cry of "DUCK!" either that or "FUCK!" both of which would have been appropriate as Gorgovitch (who had never re-joined the huddle and had been trailing along the ground for most of this with a wicked twinkle in his eye) sent the same bludger back to collide with Frank just at shoulder height.

Andi cried out and darted down nearer the scene as Ted jumped in front of Frank who had his back to the pitch. Ted stood firm, both hands outstretched in front of him as if to catch the bludger and protect Frank.

"NO DON'T-"

Only Ted was too stupid to know that a solid ball of iron wasn't going to stop for anyone. The bludger collided with Ted at full pelt and Andi swore she nearly fell off of her broom at him cry.

Blood was pouring down his arm, white ivory bone protruding from just below his elbow, the force of the collision additionally driving his shoulder backwards and leaving it to hang unnaturally out of its socket.

Madam Hooch turned at the cry and the gasp of some of the crowd, immediately throwing an accurate spell at the bludger that burst into tiny fillings. She then grabbed Gorgovitch by the scruff of the neck (in any other situation Andi would have laughed for he looked like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar as he was dragged towards the tent) and called Lucius down to the ground. She blew the whistle three times, twice quickly and the last sustained and then silence fell over the stadium as Dumbledore's booming voice echoed over the grounds.

The game had finished and every student was order to return to the castle immediately and either to the great hall for an early dinner or to their dorms. The results of the match would be announced later, prefects where to assist with clearing the pitch blah blah blah, it all went in one ear and out the other. Andi was shaken, she remained on her broom, staring at the scene unfolding before her eyes.

Ted was trying to hold it together, but tears were streaming down his face as Professor Grubbily-Plank (Head of Hufflepuff house) helped him to his feet. He needed immediate attention she said, conjuring a floating stretcher which Ted sat upon, still in floods of tears as it darted off towards the castle at the speed of light, Grubbily-Plank and Frank Longbottom in tow. She wished more than anything to fly after them, to see if he was okay, but what was she thinking, of course he wasn't okay, he had just had his arm broken and dislocated by a member of her team.

"Andi! Are you coming?!"

"Yes…" She muttered as she turned her broom and darted towards the Slytherin changing rooms, awaiting the consequences their whole team would be facing.


	13. Unexpected Results

"Pass me one."

"But Andi, you haven't smoked in months."

"I don't care."

Smoking for Andi was much more of a social habit than an addiction. She often smoked at parties, when her father wasn't around. Smoking at Hogwarts was strictly prohibited of course, but all the girls in the dorm had their secret stash in their lingerie drawers and, after that intense match, every girl had whipped one out. Andi had never really been a creature of habit but still she found the collective community feel of smokers to be a comforting thing. Besides the little habits were oddly comforting as well, the way she tapped the cigarette on the ash tray, and she had a fondness for the smell and the feel of the cigarette between her fingers. All these things become familiar and comforting after a time, and Andi was sorely in need of comfort.

As she leant in, Celeste lighting her up with the tip of her wand, Andi took a drag and smiled momentarily, her lips pursing slightly as she exhaled.

"I don't know why you even want one. It's not like you lost." Persephone moaned.

"I just… It's been a long day."

She wondered why on earth she hadn't smoked in the last two weeks especially. Of all the things, Ted was the most provoking.

Going back to the Quidditch match, yes, Slytherin had won much to the frustration of Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. It wasn't a clean win- Gorgovitch had been banned from the team for the rest of the season, leaving Lucius in a rage who then took it out on the rest of the team and then Narcissa who then blamed Andi for not returning to the tent to give Lucius the support that he needed, or something along those lines.

But she didn't feel like she had won. The glares from the tables as she walked into the Great hall had been excruciating. She hadn't done anything wrong, it's not like she had sent that bludger towards Frank, or Ted, but she felt an incredible guilt as she missed his face at the Hufflepuff table.

"Slow down, tiger." Andi had already gone through a cigarette and Maddy moved to sit behind Andi and wrapped her arms around her friend's waist, her cigarette still in mouth.

"Sorry, can I have another? I'll buy you a pack for Christmas, I promise."

"Fine." And as Andi discarded the butt, another flew into her fingers.

"Thank you."

"What's up darling? Tell me, please."

"Okay…" Andi turned and sat back against her pillows as she took another drag, the three other girls looking at her with curious eyes. She just needed to get it off her chest, it was probably the nicotine in now coursing through her blood stream but she didn't care. "You know when you think… when you convince yourself that someone doesn't matter to you, but then-"

"Oh, if this is about Mr No-One…" Persephone rolled her eyes and pouted her lips, twirling a strand of her ebony hair around her fingers.

"Shut up Seph!" Maddy cried turning to face Andi properly. "Continue."

"I…" She tapped away the ash into a coffee mug before she took another drag. "You convince yourself you don't like someone, that they're nothing important but then, something happens, they… get hurt and it just clicks you know? Like… urgh, like, I can't explain it but-"

"They're the most important person in the world."

Andi frowned towards Celeste who was looking off into the distance, as they say. All the girls frowned at her, Celeste was not one for romance, a complete work-a-holic as far as any man could consider.

"What?"

"It clicked for me in the Summer just gone. It's too late now, he got married last month but… yeah. I get it."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Do you remember Agustin?"

Andi sat there as Celeste talked, her nose beginning to wrinkle as she thought.

_Ted is your Agustin._

And that's when she decided something. She didn't want to be the girl, sat with her friends beginning to sob her heart up because they were too proud to admit they had feelings for a guy. An amazing guy who she let slip through her fingers and into the arms of another girl whom he now adores.

Maybe that was why the nightmare bothered her so much at the weekend; Andi hated the idea of him being happy in another's arms, that was her privilege and not to be shared with another girl, ever. It was selfish, yes, but since when had she ever not been selfish. Why grow a moral conscience now?

After they finished comforting Celeste, they got changed and climbed into bed.

"Sorry Andi, we we're meant to be talking about you…" Celeste muttered as she finished casting her nightly cleansing and moisturising charms at her vanity, Maddy and Persephone already fast asleep.

"It's okay sweetie, don't worry about it."

"Tell him he matters."

* * *

"A-Andi… What, what are you doing here?"

Ted sat up in his bed, it was a surprising struggle with only the one functioning arm, but he managed to pull the blankets around him as he whispered. If it had been anyone else he would have been annoyed, the clinical sheets of the Hospital Wing had made him feel so uncomfortable and it had taken him forever to get to sleep. But as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes with his free hand, he looked at her properly for the first time in days; and, oh Merlin, she looked beautiful. She had her hair loosely French plaited away from her face, the plait draping over her shoulder. Underneath her green, Slytherin dressing-gown she had a floor-length silk night dress on. The lighting was so dim he couldn't decipher the colour, but either way, the moonlight was somehow sifting through thundering rain and the Hospital Wing's large window to reflect off her skin.

"I…" She half laughed. "I don't really know why I'm here."

He sshed her and she looked around, before they both looked up to Madame Hyperon's office. The lights were still off.

"I guess we have to whisper then."

She began picking off her nail polish and he smiled, licking his lower lip subconsciously, as he noticed her nose wrinkle.

"You must have had a reason. It's the middle of the night and you could have easily gotten caught on your way here-"

"I'm sorry, about Hufflepuff's loss."

"You know I have no interested in Quidditch."

"Then what were you doing as a reserve?"

"A favour to Frank."

"Oh…"

"Is that really all you came to say?"

"No… I…" she begun to pace a little and was looking down at the floor as she whispered. "I'm sorry about what Gorgovitch did to you, or what he would have done to your friend, that was totally out of order and…"

"Go on…"

"What you did today was really brave, Ted."

"Brave? Nah, stupid's the word. Breaking an arm and dislocating a shoulder was the start. Just look at me."

"I am looking at you." He had a slightly bruised and grazed eyebrow, and he had the definition of bed hair, some strands falling into his eyes. He looked up and smiled at her smile, and she felt blood surge to her cheeks.

She moved over and sat gently on the end of the bed. "I assumed you would still be here after you weren't at dinner."

"You were looking for me at dinner?"

"Yes, well, no- I… Urgh, why is it so hard to talk to you?!" She angrily muttered under her breath, burying her face in her hands as Ted sat there in silence. "Did… did she fix your arm?"

_What a stupid question, of course Hyperon would have fixed his arm! This is such a bad idea, just get up and go back to your dorm before you make a bigger fool of yourself you silly-_

"Yeah, and popped the joint back in and all. But you know her, a healer at St. Mungo's would have sent me on my way by now, but Hyperon's spells aren't being all that effective anymore."

"Really?" _Don't reply to that, this is so not the conversation you came here to have-_

"Yeah, I mean, you'd expect more from her wouldn't you, being our Matron and everything. There's even rumours of her retiring soon too and-"

"Ted just shut up for one second."

He looked taken aback, his eyes widening and eyebrows raising as he looked at her. She looked in pain almost, but not quite physical, it was like a strain, like every cell in her body was trying to tell her brain to say something, or not to say something, and she was fighting that urge as her nose wrinkled again.

"Look, okay, when you got hurt earlier it… It hurt me too and I… can't help but feel…"

"Feel what?"

"Feel…"

"What?" he murmured back at her, leaning down towards the end of the bed before taking her hand in his.

And there were the butterflies again. She had missed the feel of his skin on hers, it had only been five days but his touch now made her realise just how empty she had felt without it.

"I feel…"

"What?"

Andi sighed deeply, closing her eyes as her fingers momentarily stroked his before she pulled them out of his reach. She stood and fumbled for her dressing gown ties, loosening them and then pulling the green fleece off her body. The fabric pooled around her feet and Ted's breath caught in this throat as he looked her up and down. She was so much prettier and sexier than she was in his dreams. She was utterly perfect. He went to speak, but his mouth had already run dry.

"Andi, w-what are you doing?"

She sat down beside him, curling her legs up onto the bed as her fingers reached for his hair. She ran them through it, getting stuck after a moment in a tangle. She smiled at him, shuffling closer towards him her heart pounding but sure of what it wanted.

She pulled his face towards him and kissed him tenderly, just lips, pulling away to then rest her forehead on his. His free hand moved onto her body, his fingertips testing the feel of her bare shoulders as he leant back in and kissed her again. But, much to her surprise he pulled away.

"I thought we agreed we couldn't do this."

"You never really agreed though."

"That is true, but I don't get it…"

"The last five days have been horrific. I spent one shitfaced, one hungover and the others missing you terribly. I know why I came here; I was so sure of it half an hour ago. Even now I…" She sighed, running her fingers down his neck to settle on his shoulders.

"If you were so sure half an hour ago… what's changed your mind?"

She looked up into his eyes, her nose wrinkly once more and a slight frown on her brow. She then smiled slightly and looked away.

"Andi? What is it?"

"Nothing has changed my mind."

She pulled him towards her again and they kissed, both with lust and affection. They kissed for a while; she nibbled his lower lip just like during their last date as she tugged slightly on his hair. She lent in a little too far and pressed against his arm that was strapped across his chest. He attempted to stifle the moan of pain, but she heard it and pulled away frowning.

"Sorry."

"Don't apologise…"

Once again they were kissing deeply and she felt her heartbeat increase and the rapid drumming echo throughout her whole body. He frowned as she pulled away and stood, and went to question what she was doing, but his jaw fell slightly open as she reached up her nightgown and slowly pulled her lace knickers down and off her legs.

"Andi…" he whispered. "No, not like this…"

"Sorry, is your arm too sore?" _You idiot, he's knackered his arm and you're too bloody sexual frustrated or whatever Maddy said, to think of anything other than that and you've only been kinda dating for a week or so- _

"No, it's not that, I just don't think we should do it like this."

"Oh…" Her eyes widened, "Oh okay, fine, it's cool, sorry I, I'll just go…" _He doesn't want to, it's not his arm, you are such an idiot!_ _You should have never come_. She leant down picking up her dressing gown and knickers, her face hotter than she had ever felt it before, as she turned and took another step towards the door Andi heard him splutter.

"No, I don't mean I don't want to!"

She turned back as he continued, it was like a splurge of words, barely coherent, and if Andi wasn't feeling so embarrassed about the whole situation she would have probably been laughing. "Of course I want to, I've wanted to for ages, but erm, I mean, I haven't been _thinking_ about _it_, okay I have, but not in a pervy way or anything I, wow, it is just me or is it really hot in here, I just, my mouth is really dry and what I'm trying to say is-"

"Do you want me to get you a drink before I go?"

"If you could that would be great but I…" Ted threw his head back in despair as Andi put her stuff on the end of his bed and moved over to the cabinet to get him a glass of water.

She handed him the glass and after he took a gulp, she took it from him and placed it on the side.

"You're you."

"What?" She frowned at him.

"I mean, it's _you_ Andi, you… you're special, it like, you, I… you deserve more than this, than a hospital bed and a broken boyfriend. You deserve more than me."

"Oh for Merlin sake, Teddy, don't you start telling me what I deserve and what I don't, you barely know me anymore! And even if you did, my _whole life_ people have been telling me what to do, and what's proper and what I deserve. And it's only recently I've realised, that's all up for debate, all of it and… I've…" her eyes softened and she looked at his half crooked smile and her knees weakened. All the fight had gone from her and she just needed to end it all right now, whether what she was about to say was clever or not. "I've never really been one for politics."

She sat beside him and kissed him again in an instant, as she wrapped one arm around the good side of his neck, the other running through his hair. As they kissed she whispered sweet nothings to him, and she felt his lips form a smile as the caressed her jawline and neck, and that's when a sentence that was altogether unexpected slipped out and over her lips.

"I came here because I finally admitted to myself just how much I love you…"


	14. An Interlude

"Done another one!"

It was pitch black outside the Gryffindor tower. The rain was pelting just as hard against this glass window as on the other side of the castle, where the hospital wing lay three floors below, but the spirits in this dorm were not to be dampened. Not by the petty fights or chilly weather as four teenage boys worked on something they kept ever so close to their chest. (Even Sirius hadn't used it in an attempt to chat up the girls in his year.)

The cheers echoed around the room as a scruffy black haired boy yanked the parchment off of his best friend.

"Oh! Watch it! The ink's still wet!"

"Shut up Padfoot."

"I spent a good two hours on that!"

"Well, I'd do some if you would let me."

"Pete, you know this map takes precision."

"Yeah I know."

"Let me see?"

James Potter pulled his glasses down from his head to sit on his nose allowing him to take in the drawing properly.

"Hospital Wing?"

"Yep. That and the…" he shuffled some papers on his desk, "the tapestry corridor. First floor of the castle is done now."

James grinned before passing the parchment to Remus Lupin, who looked at it through intellectual eyes, analysing every crimson line his friend had drawn.

"You're getting better at this, Pads."

"Practice makes perfect." Sirius rolled his dark eyes and flopped down onto the desk on top of the spare sheets of parchment that hadn't been added to the map as of yet, as well as the numerous utensils like compasses and rulers and squares.

"Only another… billion rooms to go…" Remus passed the papers back to Sirius who then attached them to the main map with a flick of his wand and it all folded up into the neat oblong pile.

"Cheer up Moony, we'll do it all eventually." James slapped him on the back, jumping then off the bed to snatch the map off of Sirius; he laughed jumping back on to Moony's bed.

"Right, do you want to do the honours and test this bad boy?"

"I want to!"

"Peter, _Sirius_ has been working on it all afternoon and evening."

"Nah, it's fine, go on Wormy." Sirius smirked as Peter Pettigrew, who even after four years in the popular gang was still the wettest and the most excitable child, stumbled out of bed and scrambled over to where Moony was sat. He pulled out his wand and cleared his throat.

"Mischief managed."

The ink began to fade and the boys all grinned, except for Remus, he often wouldn't grin until it was certain to have worked, so just a crooked smile adorned his lips; for now at least.

"Okay, okay, okay." Peter jumped up and down slightly on the spot, his tiny eyes gleaming with excitement. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

And after a slight tap of his wand on the paper, the crimson colour began to re-appear and spread over the papers forming the lines and curves that had existed on the original, but now with the addition of footprints and name labels.

"It's worked…" Remus smiled sitting back as Peter looked over the paper with adoration.

"Look, there's Hyperon in her office! It's worked, we did it!" Peter squealed in delight as James and Sirius laughed whilst gathering onto Remus's bed to look at the stretched out map.

"Nice one, Sirius."

"Wait..."

"What?" Sirius frowned. "Fuck, have I forgotten a door or window or something again?"

"No… But this is definitely finished, isn't it?

Peter pointed his stubby finger at a bed down in the main wing.

"Yeah… or the names won't be there…"

"Shit, Sirius…"

For Sirius had finished it, and there were names there. Two names were together on the map, their names in tiny crimson letters, names that shouldn't be there and shouldn't be together.

"It must be a mistake."

"You know, even in this early stage, the map doesn't lie…" Remus muttered slowly.

"It just can't be."

Sirius snatched the map out of his friend's hands, holding it so close to his face his nose was touching the paper.

"But that's… Tonks, that's… That's Longbottom's muggle-born friend, isn't it? The one who smashed his arm up earlier?"

"Yes… Yes it is." Remus murmured softly.

"Your cousin and a muggle-born… your parents are gonna freak!" Peter squealed.

"Never mind your parents, what are your Uncle and Aunt going to say about this?!"

"Guys, just shut up for a second." Sirius jumped up and began pacing. "They, they could just be talking."

"In the middle of the night on a hospital wing bed?" James pushed his glasses back to sit on the top of his head as he raised an eyebrow.

"Fuck... you don't think they're…"

"_Oh yeah_."

"Shut up, it's not funny!" Sirius threw a pillow at James as he started making kissing noises.

"To be fair, if anyone else had this map, we were all just huddled on my bed."

"That logic doesn't work Moony because if we did have the map, we wouldn't have been!" Sirius snapped beginning to pace wildly around the room. "It's wrong, it has to be wrong."

"It isn't wrong! And you bloody drew it!" James yelled over Peter's hysterical giggling.

"I know I did! Fuck, fuck fuck fuck, what are we going to do?"

"What do you mean _we_?" Remus asked softly.

"Well she's my cousin, I can't just let her do this!"

James rolled his eyes and climbed off of Remus's bed and moved to lie down upon his own.

"So what, so they're having a snog and maybe a shag-"

"Fuck off-"

"It's the truth! When is it such a big deal, you snogged those Muggle girls when we went into London that time, not to mention Emily and Mands, they're both muggle-born-"

"Don't forget Olivia!" Peter chimed in."

"Shut up, Wormtail." Sirius snapped a dark tone to his voice. All the boys started to laugh. "You think this is funny? You think my parents are bad, you should see hers! And Bella, oh fuck, if Bella was to find out she'd skin him in an instant!"

"Look, they've obviously done a pretty good job of keeping it secret, right? We only know because of the map and do you think your cousins have one? No! They don't! So just calm down, just leave them to it."

"Leave them to it, James?! Do you have _any_ idea what could happen?!"


	15. Being Careful

_A/N: Apologies for the SEVERE delay in upload of this chapter, I hope you are all still interested! I've been to-ing and fro-ing with this one, I'd love to know your thoughts! Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

Andi's heart was beating so loud she swore the girls would hear it. The door creaked ever so slightly as she pushed it open, she held her breath as she grimaced at a low groan from Persephone. She waiting a moment before tip-toeing in and closing the door behind her. She let out a sigh of relief as the three girls lay asleep before her. After creeping back into her bed, she pulled the covers up and around her shivering body, for the cold air had sent chills through her spine as it hit the thin layer of sweat that now lay upon her skin.

How filthy she felt; and yet at the same time she did not feel ashamed to have his kisses on her body, nor his mark upon her neck and shoulders. (She noted in the morning to wear her hair down until she had the opportunity to cast healing spells upon his bruises and teeth marks.) She blushed as she smiled, not quite believing what had happened, it was all perfectly logical, kissing turned into touching which turned into making love. It was like a dam of affection had been opened and once it began to flood out there was no stopping it. And even she knew Ted wasn't going to be the one to turn down sex. But her head couldn't quite get around the fact that she was the one girl out of the four in the room to know what it felt like to have a man between her legs, to know his touch and his taste and the sound of his sweet nothings in her ear…

She was sore for definite, aching and sore; every part of her being ached. She thought playing Quidditch would be an interesting feat later that week. But Andi could still feel his fingertips on her, his teeth on her neck as he attempted to contain his moans and her own lips had begun to bleed as she bit hard on her lower lip to stop her own.

It has not been like she imagined it would be. Losing one's virginity could both have been the biggest and littlest thing in her life. She had always hoped that it would be some dashing young gentleman that wanted her, but from her Mother's snide remarks, she knew with the sumptuous dark beauty of Bella and Narcissa's youthful angelic splendour to compete with she would be last choice of the three sisters. Therefore she would probably end up with lying there on her wedding night, blocking out the grunts of an older man who cared nothing for her or her needs and would just take what he wanted before rolling off of her and getting up to have a cigar and glass of port.

But how that had changed, oh how that had changed… she was desperately in love, and he loved her back. Andi had no doubt about that, she trusted Ted with her life; part of her always had. He was so very different, she had laughed at him when he first said his parents were muggles, she didn't believe him and for so long he pretended they weren't. But then she heard Bella talking about it and she felt odd that it didn't matter. He mattered. And she had told him that and they laughed and played and dreamt childish dreams. But that had changed too; the dreams were no longer childish. They were filled with adult thoughts and desires; plans for a future.

* * *

_You've had sex._

_You have had sex._

_No longer a virgin. Ha, wait till the boys hear about this one._

He couldn't really believe what had just happened, it all seemed far too surreal for a Wednesday night. He had to think it over and try to re-live it for even now it didn't seem real.

_Maybe you should be Quidditch reserve more often. Quidditch players really do get the girls…_

Ted chuckled to himself, he was exhausted but unable even to close his eyes.

The rain was still drumming hard on the window panes, and he remembered how the moonlight (dotted and patterned by the water droplets) had laid on her bare skin. She was too beautiful to comprehend.

But she had always been beautiful to him. Even back when they were kids. She had been a best friend, he knew all her secrets and had known her better than she knew herself. He knew Bellatrix didn't approve of him then and she certainly wouldn't approve that a mudblood had just slept with her proud younger sister. Andi was proud girl back during their childhood, and hated showing pain, or hurt and she hated above all else the fact she was called names by association with him. Her pride had shown tonight too, he smiled as he thought that even if his shoulder and arm was full functional she probably would have still wanted to be on top. Andi had shielded her face from him when he broke through her virginity, refusing to even let him see the pain. Upon reflection he thought that as she discovered every inch of him, Andi was discovering herself too, leaving her rules behind her and truly living for the first time in her life.

_Oh God, don't turn soppy or philosophical, it was just a shag._

But even as he said that in his head he knew it wasn't true. He had been both shock and bliss when she muttered those three little words, it felt so bizarre and yet there was something oddly familiar about saying "I love you too" as a response.

"_What's that?" Ted stopped stroking her hair as he squinted at something in the dark his breathing finally returning to normal._

"_Huh?" Andi sat up slightly more and turned to face Ted again._

"_That," he nodded his head "on your wrist?"_

"_It's your friendship bracelet, silly."_

"_You're still wearing it?"_

"_Yeah…?"_

"_I would have thought you'd have taken it off by now." He murmured gently._

"_No, of course not." Andi whispered back pressing a chaste kiss to his lips. "You're my friend, Ted."_

_They both smiled and even laughed slightly before he kissed her again, "I think we can safely say our friendship has been ruined, Miss Black."_

"_Oh, completely."_

* * *

The next morning, when Andromeda attempted to rise from her bed, the mere idea of walking crippled her. She was even achier than the couple of hours previous and her whole body was screaming for her to just lie down and never move again.

How she wasn't going to give this away she had no idea. She looked around and Maddy and Celeste had already gone down to breakfast but Seph remained sound asleep in her bed for now. She staggered out of bed, biting her already swollen and bloody lower lip to contain her whimpers of agony. She hadn't showered as of yet and was dying to have some form of wash.

Any normal day she would have made the journey to the prefects bathroom, but the mix of not wanting to be seen and not wanting to walk more than a couple of steps took her to the bathroom just past Celeste's bed. Soaking in the (comparatively small) hot bath was pleasant, she watched how her legs turned red from the heat as shampoo lathered itself into her hair after she cast a few charms. After a thorough scrub down, she levered herself out of the bath and dried her hair using another charm before stepping back out into her dorm wearing a towel, where Persephone was now changing and Maddy had returned from breakfast.

"You were a while in there." Persephone droned, obviously hinting at the fact that she had wanted to use the bathroom too.

"Sorry." Andi smiled, attempting to keep as calm as she could.

_Don't act weird, just chat as usual, get changed and go._ She repeated to herself over and over again in her head.

But getting changed without showing her pain was a challenge and she could feel Maddy's scrutinising and suspicious gaze upon her as she did so.

"Everything okay Andi?" Maddy muttered as Andi pulled on her jumper.

"Yep, never better."

"You sure about that?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Merlin, acting the ignorant angel that Narcissa had so perfected over the years was a lot harder than she thought.

"Nothing."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's nothing. I've got a free this afternoon, fancy a trip to Hogsmeade?"

Oh god, the walk would kill her. "Yeah, okay."

Maddy smiled and Andi finally felt at ease again. "Great." Maddy stood grabbing her books and bag. "See you at dinner?"

"Yep." Andi smiled through the pain as she bent down to pick up her shoes, before she groaned after the door had clicked shut behind her friends.

Today was not going to be easy.

* * *

"Ted, you're alive!" Frank cheered as Ted walked through the great hall and sat down at the Hufflepuff table to the applause of his friends and house.

"Shut up, it's not even that bad."

"Says the sling!" Alice snuck up behind him and pressed a gentle kiss to Ted's cheek. "I owe you one, Teddy, for saving my Frank." She smiled and sat down next to Frank, leaning into his shoulder.

"Honestly, it was nothing." Ted grinned. "What are friends for eh?"

"Didn't look like nothing to us." Mar now joined in the kissing fest as she placed a kiss on Ted's other cheek. "What you did was very brave."

"So I've heard." He smiled as he replayed the same words that Andromeda had whispered last night.

"Well, Teddy aint doing so bad, two kisses already this morning, you should play the wounded knight more often." Ed smirked.

Ted nearly choked from laughing on his pumpkin juice. "Oh, mate, you don't know the half of it."

Speaking of the devil, at that moment he saw Andi walk in to the great hall, arm in arm with her blonde sister, a black greasy haired boy following after. She looked in pain, but not sad thank God. She was smiling, whether that was to make up for the slight stagger to her walk he did not know, but his eyes focused in and she was still wearing his friendship bracelet; that was enough to make him grin.

Oh god, she was gorgeous. Her hair was town in loose curls, tumbling over he shoulders, light make up on and those little court shoes that clicked when she walked. Had she seen him there? He kept chancing a glance every now and again worried that he might get caught lingering by his friends or even Narcissa who seemed to be frowning a lot this morning. What he would give to wrap his arms- well, arm- around her just for another moment.

They hadn't spoken about when they would see each other again, she had just replaced her clothes and helped him do the same before a last quick snog and she disappeared into the darkness. Upon waking he had wondered if he had imagined it all, the pain killers causing him to hallucinate; until he saw the glass of water on the side that she had fetched him.

There it was, she looked up and caught his eye, she smiled just a little before pulling her gaze away and back to her sister.

"I'm just… going to the loo…"

Ted slid up and out of his seat somewhat making a spectacle of picking up his bag and a piece of toast and marmalade, hoping she would see him.

"I'll see you losers later." He grinned and sauntered out of the hall, ducking behind a pillar and waiting there patiently, chomping on his toast. After an agonising five minutes, during which he sang the whole of The Beach Boys' _Cuddle Up_ in his head, he nearly gave up and went to walk back to the common room. But then she finally appeared, walking out of the Great Hall, being careful not to look around too much. She glimpsed him behind the pillar after he stepped out ever so slightly and after a quick smile, she continued up the stairs to the first floor, veering off left.

She didn't look back, and after a moment, Ted, who was frowning and a little confused, began to follow.

Andi continued on into a part of the castle Ted had never been before, turning right and then left, before stepping into a girl's toliets. After groaning, Ted pushed the door open, how was this any less conspicuous than behind the pillar?

"Hey you…" Andi smiled as he closed the door behind him, she was leant against one of the many sinks that were situated around a large column. She walked towards him and wrapped one arm around the good side of his neck, the other around his waist pulling him into a close embrace.

"Hey yourself…" He leant down and kissed her gently, his good arm wrapping around her waist. "I've missed you."

"It's only been a few hours."

"So?"

"So I think we know who the man in this relationship is." Andi smiled as Ted pouted putting one hand on his hip.

"That is so mean Andromeda, I can't believe you would say such a thing!"

"What did I say?" Andi played along running a hand up his chest, a cheeky smile adorning her lips.

"It's not what you said it's the way you said it." Ted playfully frowned before then stealing a kiss as Andi laughed. "Now, I have to ask, why are we openly embracing in the middle of a girl's toilets. Don't you think we'll get caught?"

"No." She laughed, "No one ever comes in here."

"Why not?"

"Moaning Myrtle."

"Moaning Myrtle?"

"Yeah, she's a ghost that just wails and complains and-"

"Can hear you, you know!"

The ghostly figure of a fourteen year old girl slowly emerged from the furthest toilet stall. The girl had long, dark, lank hair with a box fringe, her round thick glasses emphasizing her empty eyes. Ted shivered slightly, even the Fat Friar got to him sometimes, he had never been a fan of ghosts.

"Shut up Myrtle you old hag." Andi droned as she rolled her eyes, fiddling with the ends of her hair.

The ghost began to sob again, and retreated back into her stall.

"A little harsh, don't you think?" Ted whispered.

"Oh you be quiet too, she's a nightmare, everyone literally avoids this place like the plague."

"Shouldn't we then?"

"Perhaps." Andi kissed Ted deeply, his free arm wrapping around her waist, running up and down her back.

He pulled away and then smiled. "Right, see you later my darling, I'll go out first, got to be careful eh?"

Ted left, a wide grin spreading across his face, not noticing the slight twitch in Andi's smile, for she suddenly remembered something, something that should have never been forgotten.

* * *

"_Andromeda, do you think we ought to have a conversation with Cissa?"_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Well, as much as I want to pretend they aren't, I'm worried that we should you know… give Cissa the sex talk."_

"_Really? You really think that she'd do that this early on?"_

"_Oh don't be such a flobberworm Andi. She's all dewy eyed and Lucius can't go a week without a good fuck."_

"_So what are we meant to say?"_

"_Just make sure that our little sister is, you know, being careful."_

"_Careful?"_

"_Careful. Spells, potions, that kind of thing."_

"_I see. Careful."_


End file.
